Stolen Minds
by Saramund
Summary: Angel has been missing for six months. They find him in a hospital ward for the mentally disabled. (Just ignore internal story ratings - had no idea what I was talking about)
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: Let's see. Broke. Still working for a living. Not famous. Name not Joss Whedon. So that must mean that I don't own any of the characters that people recognise. More's the pity. Ahh well.   
Spoilers: This was written about half way through season one ATS, so anything prior to that.   
Authors Note: No malice is intended towards those that are mentally and physically disabled. I'd been watching 12 Monkeys and Patch Adams when this idea came to me. I know that these illnesses are debilitating and serious. Okay, now that I've got that understood (I hope) please R&R.  
Rating: Mostly PG, some may be NC17 for violent content. I'll give a warning at the beginning of those chapters  
  
Chapter 1  
  
There was something familiar about the woman standing talking Miss Bronson. Someone from before, perhaps? His head felt like alarm bells were going off inside. Like there'd been some sort of explosion, or maybe a fire. He didn't like fire. Hated it in fact. He could feel himself frowning and stopped. They all said he frowned too much. Cave-man. The others had nick-named him cave-man. He frowned again. He didn't like that name. He looked up at the pretty woman. She was still talking to Miss Bronson. Miss Bronson was nice. She always smiled at him. She was nodding at the pretty woman and smiling. The pretty woman leaned down and drew on some paper. Visitors always got to draw on paper. And they got a pretty badge to put on their chest. He wanted one of those badges. They had pretty colours on them, and they opened lots of doors he couldn't open by himself.  
"Hey, cave-man!" David yelled from the other side of the desk. He looked back and noticed it was his turn. He pulled a card from his hand and slapped it on the table, on top of David's. Nick went next. Richard's turn came up and it was a match.   
"Snap!" He cried, slapping his hand down on the desk, before the others. He put the pile of cards with his other collection and smiled widely at the others.  
"Not fair!" Richard cried. "You cheated!" Richard stood up and leant over the table, but suddenly Mr D was there, holding his shoulder.  
"Richard, you know he didn't cheat. But I think we've had enough of cards for this afternoon. Besides, John has a visitor." He looked up, surprised. No one had ever visited him. Except for Dr Julian. Dr Julian used to visit him every week. On a Monday. They used to play lots of fun games. With pretty pictures and blocks.  
"John, you have a visitor. Go over and sit on the visitor's chair, and we'll bring her to you." John stood up quickly. This was something new, and he liked new things. He quickly walked over to the visitors chair, which was next to a big desk. Then he saw the pretty woman walking slowly towards him. He watched her get closer. She was very small. Smaller than Miss Betty, even. She had pretty blonde hair. Like the girl on the program Miss Betty watched. He couldn't remember the name right now, but it had lots of pretty women on it, and big men with funny names like Leaf and River. The pretty woman put a hand to her mouth like she was going to sneeze, and her eyes went all sparkly. He reached for a tissue. He knew pretty women always used tissues when they sneezed. He handed it to her and she looked at it then took it off him, slowly.  
"So you don't get all icky when you sneeze." He told her when she just stared at it.  
"Oh. Thank you." She sat down in front of him and just stared at him. It was very quiet. He shifted. This visiting stuff wasn't as interesting as he'd thought.  
"You're pretty." He finally said to her. She smiled, but she didn't look happy. He wondered why. "Why aren't you happy?" He asked her.  
"Oh, but I am. I ......" She bowed her head for a minute. Then looked back up at him. She had tears in her eyes!  
"Why are you crying?" He asked, getting worried now. She wasn't a very happy pretty woman.  
"Because I found you. Finally."  
"Found me? But I was here, all the time!" He'd never gotten lost. He was proud of that.  
"I know. I didn't before."  
"Oh. Did you get lost, pretty woman?" He asked her. Maybe she needed some help?  
"I think I may have. What is your name?" She asked him.  
"My name is John. John Doe." He said proudly. He had two names. He was special.  
"John. My name is Buffy." The pretty woman, Buffy, held out her hand to him. He looked at it, then remembered from Miss Betty's favourite show what that man Leaf did with the other pretty woman's hand. He grabbed hold of it and kissed the back of it. He looked up at Buffy and smiled.  
"Oh. Thank you John." Mr D came up and cleared his throat, and Buffy looked up at him and nodded. "John, I have to leave now, but would you mind if I came back and visited, with some friends?"   
"What do you mean?"  
"Can I bring some other people to visit you?" She asked again.  
"Me? Visit me? Ahh....okay. That'd be cool!" He stood up, ready to meet her friends. "When? Now?" He looked around for them.  
"No, John. Not now. Tomorrow. I have to go now." Buffy stepped up close to him and stared at him for a while, then leant forward and kissed his cheek.  
"Ouch!" He cried out. That had hurt.  
"What's the matter John?" Mr D asked.  
"That hurt!" He rubbed his head.  
"What, your cheek?" Mr D didn't sound like he believed him.  
"No, in here." He pointed at his hurt. "It hurt in here!" He continued rubbing at his head. The pain was going away now. So was Pretty Woman.  
"Wait!" He cried out. Pretty Woman turned back, tears falling on her cheeks. But she looked happier now.  
"When tomorrow?" He asked her, running up to her.  
"Just after lunch. Before you go out for your walk." Mr D said from behind him. "At 12.30." John nodded, happy. He'd learnt to tell the time last week. So now he could tell when Pretty Woman would come back.  
"Okay. See you tomorrow, Pretty Woman!" She said something in return, but he'd gone back to watch Miss Betty's favourite show.  
"See you tomorrow, Angel." She whispered, then walked out the door. Down the corridor, into the lift and finally into the lobby of the hospital. She walked mindlessly through into the waiting room to collapse in tears in Giles' arms. She sobbed on his shoulder for an extended period, lacing the tears with the odd punch to his shoulder. Finally, after he'd lost all feeling in his left arm, he stood back.  
"It was him, then?" He asked her, wiping her eyes with his handkerchief. She nodded, unable to speak. "How...." She shook her head.  
"He's a child, Giles!" She said thickly. "He called me Pretty Woman. He doesn't remember me. He was playing snap when I came in! Then went and watched Days as I left! I.....I asked if I could bring some friends tomorrow, and they okayed it. We get longer than today, though. Can you and...?"  
"Of course we can!" Giles reassured her. He looked to Willow, who was nodding her head. She had tears of sympathy in her eyes, looking on as the newly instated Watcher comforted the Slayer.  
"I told him we'd be back at 12.30 tomorrow. I need to go and lie down." She said weakly. Willow walked out in front of them, getting to the car and starting it up for them.  
  
  
So? What do you think? Do you want more?   
Please, give me feed back 


	2. Stolen Minds, Chp 2

Disclaimer: Let's see. Broke. Still working for a living. Not famous. Name not Joss Whedon. So that must mean that I don't own any of the characters that people recognise. More's the pity. Ahh well.   
Spoilers: This was written about half way through season one ATS, so anything prior to that.   
Authors Note: No malice is intended towards those that are mentally and physically disabled. I'd been watching 12 Monkeys and Patch Adams when this idea came to me. I know that these illnesses are debilitating and serious. Okay, now that I've got that understood (I hope) please R&R.  
Ratings: Still PG  
  
  
Chapter 2  
  
"Fifteen minutes!" He cried, checking the big clock on the wall. "Somehow, fifty years went quicker than the last fifteen minutes!"  
"What?" David asked from beside him. "Cave-man, you're talking stupid! How can you know how fast fifty years goes? I've been alive longer than you, and fifty years goes real slow, I can tell you. Why I remember thinking when I turned Fifty-five that I wished I was five again. I liked it when I was five-."  
"Shut up Dave!" Sarah yelled from the other couch. "I'm trying to watch this!" John looked at the battle on the screen. White ants versus black ants. Never any different just after lunch. Richard ran by, hitting himself over the head. He paused in front of the TV, grinned at them, then ran on. John got up and started pacing back and forth. Another fifteen minutes, and Pretty Woman would be here with her friends. Richard ran past again, hitting him on the head this time.  
"Hey! Bugger off, Richard!" He growled. Richard kept running, but turned back and poked his tongue out. "Real mature!" John applauded. Richard grinned. His eyes following Richard around the room, he noticed a movement from the reception area. He walked closer and noticed that Pretty Woman was there, with her friends. His heart sped up. He wondered if she'd kiss him again. It had hurt, but only for a second. And he liked it. Not the hurting bit, but the kissing bit. He grinned to himself. He was just like that River guy from Miss Betty's Days of our Lives. Always running around kissing people.   
"You gonna play snap with us, Cave-man?" David asked from the table.  
"No thanks, David. I've got some visitors to see." David shrugged and started to ineptly shuffle the cards. John turned back to see all three people bend over to sign the register and get their visitors badges. He watched as they passed the security badges over the panel in the door and came through. Pretty Woman first. He smiled. She was wearing a pretty blue top with black pants. She always wore pants, or high skirts. Just in case. He frowned. Just in case what?  
"John!" Pretty Woman said, coming forward. Miss Del came forward, but John turned to her.  
"It's okay, Miss Del. She was here yesterday. I'll take them over to the visitors area." Miss Del looked surprised, but nodded. He gestured with his head, and the visitors followed him. He sat down in one of the couches today, and the other three sat opposite him.  
"John, do you remember who I am?" Pretty Woman asked.  
"Sure. You're Pretty Woman." He frowned. "I think I should be calling you Buffy, though. Right?" Buffy nodded her head.  
"These are my friends, Giles and Willow." He grinned suddenly, then started laughing.  
"What's so funny, A- ah, John?" The man called Giles asked in a funny accent.  
"Willow! That's like Leaf and River from the TV show. You don't know them, do you?" He asked her.  
"Ah...no. I don't know any Leaf or River." She had pretty red hair, and wore lots of bright clothes. Again the explosion inside his head, but this time it didn't hurt quite as much, and after the noise had died down, he remembered some stuff from before. He frowned at the English Librarian.  
"Where's your jacket?" He asked. Giles frowned.  
"I didn't bring a jacket in. It's warm out."  
"But you always wear your tweed jacket!" He objected. The others froze for a moment.  
"John?" Buffy asked him, touching his hand. He looked at her, seeing something flash in her eyes, but he didn't understand.  
"He used to wear tweed, didn't he?" He asked her. She nodded. He'd been right. He'd remembered something else from before.  
"You're English! Like Maxwell Sheffield!"  
"Well, not quite." Giles looked from Buffy to him and back again.  
"But you have an accent like his."  
"He's english, A...ah, John." Willow spoke up, putting a hand on Giles arm. John sat back, content to be right. He sat watching Pretty Woman for a while, not noticing that the others were watching him just as closely.  
"You're not as sad as yesterday." He noted, making them jump slightly. Buffy looked at him, baffled for a moment, then realised that he was commenting on her tears.  
"No, John, I'm not. How about you? Does your head still hurt?" She asked, remembering his complaint yesterday.  
"It didn't before, but it does now. Not as much as yesterday, though." He sat for a moment, thinking. Then he looked slowly from one to the other.  
"You all knew me from before here, didn't you?" He asked them quietly. They all nodded slowly. He absorbed that knowledge slowly, then looked at Buffy.  
"My name isn't John, is it?" He asked her. She shook her head no. "What is it?" He asked them.  
"Angel." Buffy said quietly. It had a sound to it, as though she'd said that name many times before.  
"Angel? My name is Angel?" He smiled, looking at Willow. "And I thought your name was unusual. Is that it? What about my last name?" An uncomfortable silence followed that question. He looked at all three of them, smiling. "What, I don't have a last name? What, am I a pop star or something?"  
"No, it's just that we always knew you as Angel. You never needed a second name."  
"Like a popstar." Willow told him, smiling gently. He grinned, pleased.  
"You were my friends?" They all nodded. "What about my Mother? Father? Do I have any brothers or sisters." There was a long silence.  
"You did, a long time ago. They died in an accident." Buffy told him softly.  
"I don't have any family?" He asked her. She shook her head.  
"But...we're your family, Angel. Really, we are. We've been your family for lots of years now." Willow piped up, her voice breathy.  
"So, Angel. What have you been doing today?" Giles asked, distracting him.  
"Me? I've been helping clean up the room. And then I helped with the lunch. We had peaches for dessert. Then I watched the battle with Miss Betty."  
"Battle?" Willow asked.  
"White ants versus black ones. Miss Betty likes to watch it. I think it's just fuzz on the screen. Then I waited for you to come."  
"How long have you been here?" Giles asked after looking at Willow.  
"For ever. Well, for as long as I can remember, anyway. It was cold when I came here, and there was snow on the ground."  
"There isn't now." Willow pointed out.  
"No. It must have been a long time." He looked out at the blue sky. A nurse came up to them, and they looked up at her.  
"John, it's time for your visitor's to leave." The way she said it left no room for argument. He stood up with the others, following them silently to the door. They turned back to him when they reached it.  
"Well, Angel. We will see you soon." Giles told him. Willow just smiled and waved. Buffy held back, waiting for them to leave.  
"I'll come back tomorrow, but by myself again. If that's okay with you?" He nodded eagerly. Their visits were the highlight of his stay here, and he was thinking so much clearer than before. He could remember things for more than an hour or two. And he felt better when he knew he was going to get visitors. Or maybe, just one visitor in particular. She turned to leave, but his hand on her arm stopped her. She turned back, looking up at him. He hesitated.  
"Can I?" He asked, then leant forward and brushed her lips quickly. It hurt. Again. But he was expecting that, and had braced for it. It was also nice. He noticed that it left her speechless, which he thought was funny. She turned and walked outside the room, closing the security door behind her. She walked away without looking back, dropping the security pass on her way. Angel watched her go, a hand to his head.   
  
His dreams that night were very unusual. It was like watching an old movie. Lots of women in big dresses, frilly bouncy skirts. Guys in tights and long hair, with funny accents. And blood. A lot of blood. He woke, sweating, the sheets soaked. The other beds around him were quiet, their occupants sleeping the sleep of the untroubled. He lay there for a long time, his head throbbing with images, his eyes glowing in the dark room. 


	3. Stolen Minds, Chp3

Disclaimer: Let's see. Broke. Still working for a living. Not famous. Name not Joss Whedon. So that must mean that I don't own any of the characters that people recognise. More's the pity. Ahh well.   
Spoilers: This was written about half way through season one ATS, so anything prior to that.   
Authors Note: No malice is intended towards those that are mentally and physically disabled. I'd been watching 12 Monkeys and Patch Adams when this idea came to me. I know that these illnesses are debilitating and serious. Okay, now that I've got that understood (I hope) please R&R.  
Rating: And we're still in the PG section.  
  
  
Chapter 3  
  
She walked in to the room early in the morning, surprising Angel. He was sitting, drawing with a crayon. It was crude, but she could see that it was a face, cruelly distorted. She jumped when she recognised that it was a vampire. She put a hand on his shoulder, making him jump and swing round quickly.  
"Angel?" She queried softly. He relaxed, his heart thumping in his chest.  
"Sorry. I had a bad night last night. I'm really jumpy this morning." He looked around at the others. Richard was still running around, beating himself up. David was staring up at one of the lights in the ceiling, talking animatedly to it. Miss Betty was staring at the television, watching an evangelistic show of some sort. "And this place is driving me mad." He paused for a second, then burst out laughing. After a few moments, he looked up at Buffy, who wasn't smiling with him. "Get it? This is a mad house, and it's driving me mad!?"  
"I get it, Angel. But you're not mad."  
"No?" He asked sharply. "Then how do you explain that?" He gestured to the picture with his hand. "Whatever that is, it's not human. Or not normal, any way. And the dreams I had last night? Well, they weren't what you'd call sane." He was inexplicably angry, and it felt good. "No wonder I got locked up here."  
"Angel, you're not mad. And you're not locked up here. We're in the process of getting you released." He snorted in disbelief.  
"That's what Dr Julian said when I last saw him." He smiled suddenly, but it wasn't a warm smile. "I fit in here. Everyone has only a first name. I used to be proud of the fact that I had a last name. Little did I know what that meant. John Doe!" He smashed his fist down on the table in anger, and was surprised when he heard a loud crack, and watched as the old wooden table developed a split, right down the middle. He looked up at Buffy, his eyes wide.  
"Angel." She said slowly. "Can you wait another day for answers? The Director, Professor Matthews told us the forms would be clear by then, and we could take you out of here."  
"Professor Matthews?" He asked her.  
"Yes, Sylvia Matthews." She sat down beside him on the bench. "We've been in contact with her for about a week now, when we suspected that you were who we were looking for. She's willing to let us take you because since I first came to see you, there's been a marked improvement in your state of mind. Three days ago, you were giving me a tissue because you didn't want me to get 'icky'. Today you're moody, argumentative and thank God, broody!" She was smiling as she said this, and he had no idea why. It didn't sound like something to be happy about it.  
"That's good?" He asked dubiously.  
"That's perfect!" She reached out and touched his cheek softly. "Angel, you are a moody, argumentative and broody person by nature. Every day, you are more yourself. And as much as this will scare you, you are starting to remember. But can you just wait until I get you out of here, tomorrow morning? Until then, try not to dwell on the dreams you're having." He nodded reluctantly.  
"And this?" He asked, looking at the drawing he'd made. She ripped it off the pad lying on the table and folded it up.  
"Tomorrow, I promise." She checked her watch, then smiled. "I managed to get them to agree to a longer visit today, so let's go over where it's more comfortable." She stood up and walked over to the couches, and Angel followed her. She sat down, curling her feet up underneath her. Angel sat on the same couch, on the opposite end.  
"Now what?" Angel asked after a brief silence.  
"Well, it won't mean much to you right now, but I think I'll tell you what I've been doing since I last saw you. I mean, before I lost you. Um, that is, before..."  
"Before I lost my memory?"  
"Exactly. Okay. Deep breath, Buffy. You and I were in the same business for a long time. I've been doing what I do since I was 15 years old, so it's been a while now. Just over ten years. When I was just past 18, you went to LA and I stayed in Sunnydale - where I still live, by the way. You became a PI in LA. That's a Private investigator. I stayed in the same business. Went to Uni, graduated with honours, somehow. Still haven't figured out how I managed to get study in with my other job. About three years ago, broke up with the then boyfriend. I'd been with him for about three years, so I figured it was time to go it alone. Besides, I was kind of waiting for Liam to come back."  
"An ex?" He asked, feeling a twinge of pain in his chest.  
"You could say that." She said with a little smile that looked all soft and warm. He wished she would look like that for him.  
"What next?"  
"Well, after averting a few major disasters, and a couple of minor mishaps, things settled down for a while. Got pretty quiet. Then.."  
"What do you do for a living?" He asked, noticing that she'd managed to skirt the issue. She looked uncomfortable for a minute.  
"Can that be something you ask me tomorrow?" She asked him. He got flashes from his dreams the night before and decided he didn't want to know right now, after all. He nodded agreement.  
"So, this Liam guy. You still waiting?"  
"Still. Getting a little impatient with him. But I figure he's got things to sort out. He'll come round eventually."  
"You must love him, then." It hurt to ask, but he had to know. She looked at him, and there was that smile again, all soft and warm.  
"This will sound sappy, but he'd understand. He has my heart, I have his. Simple as that."  
"Sappy, but nice anyway. Lucky guy." He suddenly wanted to change the subject.  
"Is there anyone else that I'll be meeting tomorrow?"  
"Well, there's Cordelia and Wesley. And Xander. Though I'm not too sure he should be there."  
"Why not?" He asked her. "And what kind of name is Xander? Sounds like a name from TV."  
"Actually it's Alexander, but we all call him Xander. And you and he didn't exactly get on when you lived in Sunnydale. But it just might help you along." He shrugged.  
"If I can't remember him, then I probably won't be stressed about our history, will I?"  
"Point. Now Cordelia and Wesley are your employees. But more than that. They're like your family here. You all work together, have for close to five years now. And with the kind of investigating you do, that's brought you really close. Wesley developed 'allergies' when we told him we'd found you. Cordy cried as well. You've got a couple of other people that work with you, but those two are closest to you. Xander, as I said, is an old friend of both of us. Well, me anyway."  
"And how do I know Giles and Willow?"  
"Same as Xander. Friends of mine that became your friends by default. Our line of work kind of throws unlikelies together and they either have to mesh or get out. No choice. Which is why we know so many different people."  
"Fair enough. Can you tell me how long I've been missing for, at least?" He asked her.  
"You went missing almost six months ago. Went out on a job with Cordelia, and ran off after you'd finished it. Didn't come back. I can't explain any more until tomorrow - more of that stuff that you're not quite ready to hear yet." Her tone was apologetic.  
"That's okay. Can you tell me any more of your history?"  
"Some of it. Most of it I'll tell you tomorrow." She paused for a moment. "Angel, don't think that I'm trying to drag you along, to draw out what you can't remember. It's just that....." She looked around at the ward. "This is the wrong place to tell you what we need to." She smiled crookedly. "I may just get locked up, too!" There was a moment's silence, while they both thought about that. Then Angel took a deep breath.  
"You've told me all about your friends. Our friends. What about you? Are you a friend? A relative? How did I know you?" He watched as she shifted uncomfortably for a few minutes, very quiet.  
"Look, if you don't want to tell me, that's fine."  
"No, Angel. I think I do need to tell you. We were...lovers. Of a sort. When I was in highschool. But we .......realised that we couldn't be lovers and do our jobs at the same time. That's why you went to LA...... So that we could continue our work without causing each other pain." She still didn't sound comfortable talking about it.  
"Oh." He said softly. Then he frowned. "Highschool? How old am I?" For some reason, that set her off laughing, which was a big change to what she was like a second before.  
"Was that funny?" He asked, smiling slightly. She had a nice laugh.  
"You have no idea how funny that is. For now, let's just say that you're a little bit older than I am."  
"More of that stuff that you can't tell me right now?" He asked her with a sly grin.  
"Uhuh." She checked her watch. "Damn. I've got to go now, Angel. I'm meeting with Sylvia in about five minutes to go over the final release papers for you. I'll see you tomorrow morning, and we'll get out of here." She stood and he followed. They got to the door and she turned back, her eyes very calm and serious.  
"Don't dream tonight, will you?" She commanded him.  
"I'll try not to. But I don't have all that much control over my subconscience."  
"In that case, try to remember the last ten years? Instead of what was before. It will ease you." He saluted her gently, grinning all the while. She smiled back, opened the door and left.  
He watched her go, standing on the other side of the glass, hands loosely at his side. Richard gamboled over, and stopped, watching her leave with him.  
"Pretty girl, cave-man." He said, grinning like a loon.  
"Yup." Angel replied, watching as she turned the corner and left his sight. He turned away and walked over to the couches to sit down for a while, thinking over what she'd told him.  
"You're leaving us soon, aren't you, cave-man?" Miss Betty asked him, never taking her eyes off the television.  
"I am. Tomorrow." He watched with her. For the last time.  
"Will you come back and visit?" She whispered, wringing her hands together in her lap.  
"I will."  
"Good." And that was his good bye with Miss Betty. Slowly, throughout the rest of the morning, and into the afternoon, he said goodbye to every inmate in the ward. Most of them knew him, and were sorry to see him go. He was always helping someone up when they fell down. Or protecting the quiet, shy people. Like Miss Betty. They'd learned to appreciate and rely on his help. Now it was going.   
Just before lights out, when they were all watching TV quietly, David got up and walked up to him. He stuck his chin out, doing a very good impression of an insulted bull-dog. Angel leaned around, finding the TV again. David moved, blocking his view once more.  
"Yes?" Angel asked, finally looking up at him.  
"You going?" David asked him.  
"I'm watching TV right now, David. I'll go to bed soon."  
"Not what I meant. You getting out of here?" David was growling.  
"Tomorrow." Angel braced, readying for a fight. But David suddenly collapsed, wailing, against his legs.  
"You can't! You can't! It would......it would change the symmetry here. Then the world would collapse! We must have ten ten! Ten ten, don't you understand? Without you, it's not ten ten anymore! It's something else. It's....it's wrong!" Angel was loosing feeling in his legs, David was holding on so tight. One of the nurses got up off his chair, coming towards them. Angel shook his head.  
"David, it's going to be okay. I have it on authority that it's not ten ten at all. It's fifty fifty. But I was told it wasn't what's in here. But what's out there. Everywhere. It has to be fifty fifty. As long as it's fifty fifty, we will all still be here." David had drawn back by this time, and was looking at him doubtfully.  
"Who told you?" He asked suspiciously.  
"The PTB." Angel said, patting his finger against the side of his nose. David's eyes widened.  
"The PTB? Really! You talk to the PTB? And they told you that? Wow! PTB. Fifty fifty PTB!" He started chanting, standing up and rocking with it. "PTB PTB. Fifty Fifty PTB." Angel watched, wondering what on earth had prompted him to say those three letters together. David liked them, though, so that was a good thing. Just then the nurses came in, announcing lights out. Angel, lying on his bed, could hear David three rooms down, still chanting. He fell asleep listening to it. 


	4. Stolen Minds, Chp4

Disclaimer: Let's see. Broke. Still working for a living. Not famous. Name not Joss Whedon. So that must mean that I don't own any of the characters that people recognise. More's the pity. Ahh well.   
Spoilers: This was written about half way through season one ATS, so anything prior to that.   
Authors Note: No malice is intended towards those that are mentally and physically disabled. I'd been watching 12 Monkeys and Patch Adams when this idea came to me. I know that these illnesses are debilitating and serious. Okay, now that I've got that understood (I hope) please R&R.  
Rating: And those under 17 can still read without fear (PG)  
  
  
Chapter 4  
Whether it was Buffy's commandment or the trick of luck Angel didn't know, but his dreams were much nicer. Softer. Most importantly, there was no blood. Just images of sunlight, a younger Buffy and a thin woman with long brown hair. And most importantly, there was laughter and kindness. Not just towards him, but from him, given to the two women. And several others, none of which he recognised. He woke up the next morning feeling relaxed and excited.   
They were waiting for him after he'd had breakfast. Cereal and milk, as always. He wondered if normal people ate breakfasts like they do on TV. Fruit and bacon and eggs and toast. He'd find out soon enough. Mr D came up to him, while he was still sitting down, sipping his orange juice.  
"It's time, John." He was told. He stood up and looked at Mr D.  
"What is your name?" He asked, having not heard it once in the six months he'd been in the ward.  
"Daniel." The nurse replied.  
"Daniel, my name is Angel. Not John." Daniel stopped for a second, then nodded.  
"Good luck then, Angel. This way." Angel followed, waving quietly to the others. Daniel led him towards the door, then opened it and took him outside. Miss Bronson waved, busy talking on the phone. It felt cold and stark outside the ward. Daniel led him down the same corridor that Buffy had used before, turning right at the end. Another set of doors were just beyond the turn, and Daniel punched in some numbers and swiped his card, opening the door and stepping back. Angel hesitated, unsure.  
"Go on, Angel. They're on the otherside waiting for you." He walked through and almost jumped when the door shut behind him. He saw what he thought was a waiting room just up a head. The chairs were placed in well ordered rows, and there was Buffy and Giles sitting in two of them. He walked forward, his heart beating strongly in his chest. He was happy to be out of the ward, but scared at the same time. It was all he knew. All he remembered. Buffy looked up as he walked in, and then stood up quickly. Giles stood up after her, and stared. Angel had been given some different clothes to wear this morning. Black slacks and a sloppy dark grey jumper. No shirt. It felt...right. Buffy smiled at him.  
"What?" He asked her, feeling uncomfortable. He'd gotten used to the clothes he'd been given in the ward. Grey sweat pants and jumper, with a white top underneath.  
"You just look like....you. Now. I brought those in yesterday, so that you could wear them when you left. They're your clothes, Angel. All we need to do is cut your hair again."  
"It's bad?" He asked, hand going up to it.  
"No, it's just not how you wear it, normally. But we'll do that later. Let's get you back home."  
"Home?" He felt like he should go back inside. He'd not said anything remotely intelligent since he walked out of that door.  
"Yes, home." Giles spoke for the first time. "Let's go." He walked ahead, giving Angel and Buffy time to follow. The car park downstairs was very quiet. It was still early in the morning, and the usual visiting crowd had not come yet. Angel looked back up towards the fifth floor. His floor. He saw a face peering out of one of the windows, and waved up. Whoever it was waved back. The car was parked on the other side of the car park. Out of the shadow of the building. Angel followed Buffy and Giles towards the car, then stopped suddenly, just before the sunlight touched the tarmac. Buffy noticed he wasn't following after a few steps and turned back.  
"Angel?" Then she saw where he'd stopped. "Oh." He looked up at her, confused.  
"I....I don't want to step forward. I'm scared. Why am I so scared of the sunlight?" He was worried that he really would have to go back into the ward. Buffy walked towards him, Giles standing just beside the car.  
"Angel, it's okay. There is a reason why you're scared of the sunlight. But you don't need to be anymore. Look, put your hand on my shoulder." She stepped forward, just into the shadow of the building. Angel did as he was told, putting his hand on her shoulder. She stepped back, extending his arm. His hand was now in the sunlight. He felt the warmth wash over his palm. She stepped back again, and he stepped forward with her. Now his arm was in sunlight. Once more she stepped back, and once more he followed. He was now standing in direct light. His whole body bathed in the natural warming globe. He held his breath, waiting for something. What ever it was it never happened, and he breathed a very deep, relieved breath.  
"Okay?" She asked him after a moment. He nodded. "I'll tell you why-"  
"Later?" He asked, a small smile on his face.  
"Later." She agreed.  
  
Giles pulled up at a small apartment block about an hour later. The drive had been interesting, familiar. Angel knew that he'd been here before.  
"My home?" He asked.  
"Not quite. This is where Cordelia lives." Buffy told him, unbuckling and opening the door at the same time. The name Cordelia brought a flash of memory. She was sitting down, laughing with him, with a window full of lights behind her.  
"Angel? Shall we go in now?" Buffy asked him, standing with Giles. Angel nodded and walked with them up the stairs. Giles knocked on one of the doors, which opened almost immediately.  
"Thank you, Dennis." Giles said, entering the house. Buffy followed, with Angel a step behind. His heart had sped up, and he was breathing in short gasps. Giles noticed.  
"It's okay, Angel." Giles said, coming forward. "Try not to get worked up. Have a seat, we'll bring you some tea." Angel sat down on one of the couches, then noticed that there were a couple of other people with him. Willow, he'd met a few days ago. The others must be his friends. The brunette was familiar, he'd seen her in the flashes he was getting. The two men, he didn't recognise.  
"You're Cordelia." He said, pointing at the brunette. She smiled, delighted that he'd recognised her. "You're Willow. But I don't....I can't...."  
"My name is Wesley Windam-Price, Angel. This is Alexander Harris. We both knew you before you lost your memory."  
"Wes and Xander." Angel said, looking at the both.  
"Yes, you called me Wes. Do you remember?" Wesley asked, leaning forward.  
"No. Just the name Wes." He looked at Buffy, a little worried. She'd sat down beside him.  
"It's okay, Angel. You'll remember, just give it time." Giles walked in with a tray of tea, and handed him a cup. He sipped, letting the hot drink calm him.  
"Is it later yet?" He asked, looking at the others watching him. He felt that they were restraining themselves, had been told to hold back because he couldn't remember them.  
"Later?" Cordelia asked.  
"Well, we haven't told him his history yet, we thought we'd leave that for today - when we didn't have the other people surrounding him." Buffy explained quickly.  
"Good idea." Wesley approved.  
"Thanks." Giles said dryly. "I suppose it is later." There was a long silence as they all thought how to explain to Angel his life.  
"Um....Angel." Willow caught his attention. "Do you believe in the supernatural. Like witches. Demons. Vampires. Things like that?"  
"Why?" He saw her about to get annoyed with him and held up his hands. "Okay, I'll answer it." He thought for a few seconds. "I suppose. I don't disbelieve, anyway. Hell, how am I supposed to know? It seems to me, I'd be that last person you'd ask that question."  
"There is a reason." Buffy told him, sitting forward. "They do exist, Angel. Demons, witches, vampires. They all are very real, and some of them are very dangerous. My job. Our job was to fight them. I'm known as the Slayer." A flash of bright memory flickered through his mind. Buffy fighting with some grossly figured man. At that point, Buffy held up the crayon picture he'd drawn the day before.  
"Angel, this is a vampire. You drew it yesterday, remember? Your subconscious was trying to tell you something."  
"You fight vampires?" He asked, making sure he understood.  
"We both do. And anything else of the evil variety that may pop up. Generally it's vampires for me. You used to take care of a lot of the demons that live in LA. You, Wes and Cordelia."  
"Okay." Angel said slowly. "What happens if I say, you're mad!?" He asked, getting up and looking at them all. They were all very serious, and looked at him with pity and understanding.  
"I'd say, we're not. It's just a part of the world that most people try not to see. How about we give you some proof of witchcraft, at least? Would that help you?" Buffy asked, still sitting down.  
"Sure! Why not! Go on, turn me into a frog!" He stood still, waiting.  
"This is different." Xander commented.  
"What?" Angel asked him, glaring.  
"Well, before, it used to be you, telling us about the demons that were coming. You knew they existed because you were a vamp-"  
"Xander!" Buffy, Willow and Giles cried out at once.  
"What?" Angel demanded, getting a cold shiver down his spine. He heard Buffy growl low in her throat, then she turned to face him.  
"Not that way I wanted to get you to remember, but here it is. You were born around the year 1750 - over two hundred years ago. You were made into a vampire by your sire, Darla. You were cursed over 80 years ago by a gypsy troupe after you'd killed one of their daughters. You got a soul. That's when you started to help people, and fight evil."  
"I'm a vampire? And I'm two hundred and change years old?" He started to smile, then laugh. He noticed that on one was laughing with him. He stopped, suddenly cold.  
"This isn't funny, is it?" He asked them all. They shook their heads. "You really believe this, don't you?" They nodded. "Shit." He sat down again, thinking that he wasn't the only one who needed to see a shrink.  
"Angel, think about the dreams you were having. The picture you drew. Your fear of sunlight this morning." Giles told him quietly.  
"But I can walk in the sunlight! From what I can remember of vampire folk-lore, they can't. So how can I be one?"  
"You were one up until about 8 months ago. The PTB gave you back your humanity as a reward for services rendered." Wesley told him.  
"Convenient." He said shortly.  
"How about some proof?" Willow asked him. "Not about the vampire, but about the other stuff?" He gestured, as if to say, go ahead. She did so, chanting softly. After a few seconds, she held out her hand and a blue flame appeared in the middle of her palm. She closed her hand, the flame disappeared. She then opened her eyes and started another chant. She pointed at the lamp on the table beside him. He watched as it melted slowly, and formed a pool of melted ceramic and plastic. It then reformed slowly, reversing the melting process.  
"Oh." He mutters softly. A book flew through the air towards him suddenly, and he jumped back, stunned. It landed gently on his lap and the pages started flicking over, quickly.  
"Willow? You can stop now." Angel told her, believing.  
"That's not me. It's Phantom Dennis." The pages stopped turning  
"Phantom Dennis. Let me guess, a ghost?" The others nodded. "Right."  
"Read what he's put in front of you." Buffy suggested. Angel looked down at the book on his lap, and started reading.  
"Watcher Diary, July 1857. Angelus and Darla were seen in Bombay earlier this month. After following several leads, I found proof of their occupation of the city in a small underground apartment. They had been there for some time, if the bodies buried in the area behind the apartment were any indication. However, this nest appeared to be extremely old, and it is possible that it has been used by several vampires throughout the last fifty years. My Slayer, Charlotte is keen to follow the two, however, I would like to study their habits first. It should give us insight into their behaviour. These two in particular seem to enjoy death. I fear for Charlotte, I must admit. Angelus has a reputation." He looked up at the others, after reading this entry.  
"Angelus? Why does that feel familiar."  
"It's you. Or rather, you when you were a vampire. You shortened your name when you gained a soul. You are now Angel. Keep reading."  
"Watcher Diary, March 1900. We have followed Angelus to Los Angeles. I have been following him for several months now. I have been trying to complete what Watcher Anthony started fifty years ago, but this creature is illusive and dangerous. I have already lost both of my assistants to him. Marissa is with me again, after leaving to destroy the nest of vampires in Mexico. She is watching, studying the creature they call Angelus. He truly does have the face of an Angel. I am afraid for her. Angelus killed Charlotte, Anthony's slayer. What will he do with Marissa?  
Watcher Diary, August 1900. The earthquake has destroyed Los Angeles. What was left of the city is now a battlefield for the living. Angelus and his sire, Darla, are rampaging through the city. From what I can see, when I do manage to follow them, they are killing indiscriminately, not even hiding their demon visage from the populous. Marissa has gone now. Not as I feared, but by her own hand. She was crippled in the quake, after a building fell on her. She told me that the world needed the next Slayer, and while she lay crippled, the next one would not come. She died bravely. The new Slayer has not arrived yet, and I fear it may be too late for us to stop Angelus. He's looking ready to leave again. My contacts tell me it's likely to be Prussia, or Romania. I will continue to watch until then.  
Watcher Diary, May 1920. Continued searching has failed to come up with any leads on Angelus. He was last seen in Romania with his sire, Darla. Since that time, he has disappeared from view, and the Council resources have failed to come up with a location for the vampire."  
"That was when you were cursed with a soul again." Buffy told him when he stopped reading. "You used the name Angelus because when you first rose, you visited your house, and your sister called you an Angel, and invited you in."  
"I remember her." He said softly, seeing a young girl looking up at him, her eyes bright with wonder. Then her eyes dimming as he....killed her. His heart turned over and then started aching with remembered pain. He looked up at Buffy, tears of pain in his eyes. "I remember killing her. Enjoying it. And my mother. And father. Oh GOD!" He shoved up from the chair and started pacing, trying to get away from the memories. If this was what he was like, he didn't want to remember. Without warning, he was seeing hundreds of people, all of them dying or dead, and knew he'd killed them. He lashed out at the wall closest to him, punching it as hard as he could. Then he stopped, stunned, looking at his hand. It had penetrated the wall and the brick behind it, and was embedded up to his elbow. Buffy came up to him and helped him remove his arm.  
"That was the other thing that we forgot to tell you. When you were made human by the Powers That Be, they left your strength. You're now much stronger than a normal human. Like me." He was studying his hand, flexing it, noticing that it didn't hurt. Then he processed what she'd just said.  
"Like you? What do you mean?"  
"I'm the slayer, Angel. I am preternaturally strong. Like Superman. But not an alien. And I don't have an ice palace."  
"Oh.... Huh?" He was frowning. Buffy shook her head, annoyed with herself.  
"I keep forgetting that you don't remember anything. The Slayer is a girl born in every generation. Chosen to protect the public from vampires and demons etcetera etcetera. To help with this, we're extremely strong, and we heal fast."  
"Slayer. The diaries mentioned a slayer."  
"That's right. We've been around since before time began. Every time one of us dies, another is called."  
"And you fight?"  
"Demons. Vampires. Bad guys. Basically we fight evil."  
"We?"  
"We. When I'd just started out, you helped me. For three years, we fought together, learning from each other."  
"We fought each other?"  
"Just for a while. About 6 months, when you turned bad again."  
"I turned....No, I don't want to know." He paused for a few moments, gathering himself. "If what you say is true." He looked at the hole in the wall. "And it seems to me that I can't really argue with what you've shown me, then what happened to me? Why did I loose my memory?" He looked around the room, staring at each one of them. "What happened?"  
"That's what we're going to find out." Wesley said, getting up off the couch.  
"How?" Xander asked.  
"We have an idea." Cordelia admitted. "Wesley was sort of hoping that Willow would be able to help."  
"Me?" Willow was stunned. "Why would you need my help?"  
"To perform a spell to help him remember." Wesley told her. "We've researched, and we think we've found one, but it takes three with the power to perform it. That's you, Giles and myself."  
"Oh. That sounds like a plan." Willow jumped up, ready to help.  
"Now? I didn't think we'd be performing it now!" Giles exclaimed, standing up.  
"Why not now?" Wesley asked. "He's here, we've got the spell ready. Better now than later."  
"Has anyone asked me if I want this done?" Angel asked petulantly.  
"No." Cordelia told him. "But you're getting it done. I want my boss back." Angel's eyebrows rose, but he said nothing.  
"Right, then. Shall we?" Giles suggested.  
  
  
Shall I continue? Or should I just give up?  
Please review. 


	5. Stolen Minds, Chp5

Disclaimer: Let's see. Broke. Still working for a living. Not famous. Name not Joss Whedon. So that must mean that I don't own any of the characters that people recognise. More's the pity. Ahh well.   
Spoilers: This was written about half way through season one ATS, so anything prior to that.   
Authors Note: No malice is intended towards those that are mentally and physically disabled. I'd been watching 12 Monkeys and Patch Adams when this idea came to me. I know that these illnesses are debilitating and serious. Okay, now that I've got that understood (I hope) please R&R.  
Rating: PG  
  
  
Chapter 5  
  
He sat watching them prepare. He wasn't too sure he wanted to remember what he was, what he'd been. The glimpses he'd had of his previous life did nothing to make him feel safe or reassured. In fact, they made him feel scared and horrified. But everyone else felt that he should, and at this point, he felt that they'd helped him this much, he may as well go along with it. Willow, Giles and Wesley sat in a circle, clasping hands. The others stood to one side of the room, watching. Before the three in the circle lay a lock of Angel's hair that they'd cut off, and a watch. Underneath the watch was some mixture of herbs that they'd prepared earlier. The lights turned off suddenly, courtesy of Phantom Dennis. Then the three started talking quietly. Angel realised they'd started the spell.  
"Phunol, God of time, hear us." Giles spoke up.  
"Sharwi, Goddess of life, hear us." Willow added her call to the group.  
"Mintol, God of health, hear us." Wesley finally joined in. They chanted each call three times each, then opened their eyes. Before them were three tiny sparks of light, each a different shade of colour. One was a brilliant jade green. The other, hovering before Willow, was a very bright yellow, almost the colour of sunshine. The final spark was dark, almost as if it wasn't shining, but sucking light into it. It was a dark shade of red, almost black in colour.  
"We beseech thee to heal our friend, who's essence you have before you. Take our offering and his essence and heal him, for he is one of your warriors." The three specks of light swirled around inside the circle they'd formed, then dove down to the hair and watch. Within an instant, so quick that Angel did not see how they managed it, the watch and his lock of hair was gone, and so were the three lights. Willow Giles and Wesley sighed deeply and let go of each others hands.  
"Now what?" Cordelia asked impatiently.  
"We wait, Cordelia. We wait." Giles told her, pushing himself off the floor. Willow got up and went over to the window, looking out into the noon-day light.  
"Oz is here." She announced, then turned as the door opened.  
"Hey, guys." The blonde man said, walking inside the house.  
"Hey, Oz." They chorused back.  
"Angel." He said, turning to the tall man still sitting down. "It's good to see you."   
"Hello Oz." Angel said. He remembered this man. "You're a wolf." He said, pointing at him. The small man smiled, surprised.   
"Yeah, I am. I thought you'd lost your memory."  
"I have." Angel felt as though they didn't need to talk anymore. As though they'd said all they'd needed to.  
"You remember Oz?" Xander asked.  
"I seem to. But just him, nothing else. No conversations." Willow had a small smile on her face.  
"That's because you guys never talked. You're both one word men. And that's grunt." She smiled as she said it. Angel shrugged in return.  
"That's probably why then." The last word was gasped out as he felt a crippling pain inside his head. He grabbed at his temples, moaning, and fell from the couch on to the floor.  
"Angel!" He heard Buffy cry out as if from a distance. Right now, he was too busy worrying about keeping his head from exploding.  
"It wasn't supposed to hurt him!" Willow cried out, worriedly.  
"Well it is!" The Slayer snarled. Angel was panting in pain, but the worst seemed to be over. "You set up this spell, not knowing how it would affect him, if it would at all,-"  
"Buffy." Angel said quietly, halting her rage in its' tracks. "It's okay. It wasn't her fault. I had two hundred and fifty years of memory to fit inside my head. That's what hurt. Not Willow's cure." He was rubbing his temples as he spoke, trying to ease the ache inside. The Slayer was on her knees beside him, a hand on his shoulder. He rolled to the side and sat up, looking around. They were all crowded around him, looking concerned.  
"It's okay, people. Back up and give a guy some air." They backed off straight away, all except Buffy. He looked at her slowly, studying her face, searching for the changes that had occurred since his last sight of her, over two years ago. She still looked the same, innocent and tough at the same time.  
"New scar." He noted, tracing the light ridge along her collar bone.  
"Yeah, one of them got a little too close for comfort." Then she gasped. "You remember!" She cried out.  
"That's what the spell was for, wasn't it?" He asked, a smile tilting up half of his mouth. "It worked. But now there's all these memories right up there, in front of me, and I'm trying to see past them. It's not easy." He noticed Cordelia and Wesley sitting opposite him.  
"Cordy, Wes." He smiled at them, then noted that they both had tears in their eyes. He knelt up and shuffled over to them. Cordelia surprised him by throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly. Wesley just put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. He remembered then what had happened just before he'd last seen these two. They'd all had a rip-roaring fight over how to conquer their current demon foe. He'd been in a horrible mood that day. It was the anniversary of his family's death. It never was a good day for him. He'd yelled at them both, insulted them, and stormed off. That was the last he'd seen of them until this morning. They all moved away from each other, knowing that it was all in the past, and forgiven.  
"This hurts." He complained, rubbing his temples again. Then one memory pushed all others to the background. "That sonuva-." He growled quietly.  
"What?" Buffy asked him.  
"Timothy. The informant. That son of a bitch screwed me over."  
"Does someone want to explain what he's talking about?" Buffy asked the room at large.  
"Timothy was the guy who told us about the demon we were fighting when Angel disappeared. But I don't know what he's talking about. Timothy needed our help." Wesley explained. Angel snorted in disgust.  
"That is one guy who needs no-one's help. Timothy is a first class warlock. One for the otherside. He used a spell on us to get us to separate, so that I would be alone. Then he and his two friends cast the amnesia spell. I was walking towards the rendezvous point, and then all of a sudden I didn't know who I was or where I was. Within seconds an ambulance appeared, obviously previously called, and I was taken to one of the hospitals. I was a child. They'd taken away all of my memories, and I was a child for so long." They could feel the menace flowing off him in waves, pulsing around the room. His eyes were hard.  
"Timothy is dead." He said flatly.  
"But...." Giles objected. "He didn't hurt you. Just cast a spell." Angel glared at Giles.  
"Timothy was a warlock, Giles. Otherwise known as a blood-mage. Dark wiccan. How do you think he got the power to do what he did to me? I can hear their voices even now, crying out as the spell was cast. Each of them, like a separate person, screaming in my ear." He put his hands over his ears in a useless gesture, trying to shut out the screams from his memory. "Oh, he's dead, alright. And his friends, too."  
"How many?" Buffy asked, her voice equally flat. Angel knew she wasn't asking about his friends, but those who'd died.  
"To perform that kind of spell, and make it last? Five, maybe eight deaths would be required. I can hear them. I can hear six. Six dead because of me."  
"Not you!" Cordelia told him sharply. "You didn't tell Timothy to cast a spell, he did that all on his own. Blame him."  
"Wisdom from Cordy! I'm in shock." Xander called.  
"Shut up, Xander." Cordelia shot back.  
"Make me!"  
"Oh, how mature, Mr I'm-smarter-than-you-are! I'm so impressed by your witty repertoire!"  
"I didn't repeat anything! Everything I say is original."  
"Repertoire, not repeat. It means-."  
"Guys! Shut up!" Willow yelled at them. The both shut up, then grinned. They always had fun when they were fighting.   
"Where do we start?" Wesley asked Angel, getting them back on subject. Angel smiled at him.  
"Same place we always do. Research."  
"In that case, to the hotel we go." Wesley replied. 


	6. Stolen Minds, Chp6

Disclaimer: If you haven't figured out by now that I DON'T own these guys, you need to stop reading the story, and start paying attention the blurbs up top that no one reads!  
Spoilers: This was written about half way through season one ATS/Season 4 BTVS, so anything prior to that.   
Authors Note: No malice is intended towards those that are mentally and physically disabled. I'd been watching 12 Monkeys and Patch Adams when this idea came to me. I know that these illnesses are debilitating and serious. Okay, now that I've got that understood (I hope) please R&R.  
Rating: PG   
  
Chapter 6  
  
The hotel hadn't changed since he'd last seen it, six months ago. Cordelia and Wesley had obviously kept the business going, as well as they could. He sat down at his chair, and sighed in comfort. It was good to be home. Even if he hadn't missed it. Buffy knocked on the door to his office and entered.  
"The others are in research mode, but they told me to come in here and check on you." She moved forward, and stood in front of the desk, looking a little hesitant.  
"You okay now?" She asked him. He nodded, knowing that he was. "Good." She sighed, then sat down on the other chair.  
"So." She said after a long silence.  
"So." He echoed. He felt a little uncomfortable in her presence, as though he should be remembering something he wasn't.  
"I know I already know this, but it is weird. You being human, I mean. The last time I spoke to you, you told me it would happen, but I thought, you know. Years away, maybe after I was..."  
"Gone." He said quietly, swinging around to watch her.  
"Yes. But you're human now." She was struggling.  
"Who's Liam, Buffy?" He asked her quietly.  
"Sorry?" She frowned at him, confused.  
"Who's Liam? The one you're waiting for." Although his heart was shattering, he had to remind her that she was waiting for someone. She thought for a second, then looked at him, her face calm.  
"You are." She told him, whispering.  
"What?"  
"You're Liam, you great hulk!" She yelled, standing up. She was standing there, ready to have a fight with him, when he seemed to collapse in on himself.  
"Angel?" She said quietly. "Look, forget what I said. It doesn't matter. I didn't mean-."  
"You finish that sentence and I'll shave your head!" Angel said very low, very quietly. Amazingly, Buffy shut up straight away.  
"I....we..." He shook his head. "We don't have time for this right now. I have a warlock to hunt down. Can we talk about this later?"  
"Ahh....okay. That makes sense, I suppose." She didn't sound convinced, but got down to business. "This Timothy guy. Other than the memory thing, do you think he's dangerous?"  
"Yes. He's had six months to roam free around LA, gathering power where he could find it. In a city like this, he'd find a lot of it. Murder and violence occur daily, in a large scale in LA."  
"But doesn't he have to inflict the pain in order to.....get the power?" Buffy sat down again, feeling uncomfortable.  
"Not at his level. He's gone passed that stage. Or he had six months ago. He's like a vampire now, but instead of feeding directly off blood, he feeds off the fear and pain caused by death and violence. The more violent the death, the more powerful the aura."  
"So in other words, to keep the police from clueing in on his homicidal tendencies, he just follows around cop cars and ambulances, hoping to find death, destruction, mayhem?"  
"Or become a paramedic. And guess what Mr Timothy Duvant is?" Angel said dryly.  
"A paramedic?"  
"Well done, go to the top of the class." A knock on the door interrupted them, and they looked up to see Wesley peeking his head around the corner.  
"We found some information on him." They were told. He came in completely, a printed piece of paper in his hands.  
"Just last week, Mr Duvant received a letter of commendation from the Mayor of LA for bravery and commitment to his patients. It seems that there was a multiple hostage situation, and he took the place of one of the elder hostages, and was there throughout the siege, right up until the guy was killed by the SWAT team. Then tried to save his life, too."  
"Save his life? But isn't death what he wants?" Buffy asked.  
"The SWAT Team probably saw him with the guy, and thought that was what he was doing. He may have been doing something completely different."  
"Like a ritual?" Wesley asked.  
"Yeah. Check into that, would you? Find out what rituals require the life essence of someone, or even the fleeing soul of the recently departed." Wesley nodded and shot out of the room. There was silence again, for a long time.  
"Can you tell me what's been happening in your life this last few years?" Buffy broke the silence.  
"I suppose so. You did give me an update on yours yesterday." He sat there, staring at his hands for a while, thinking. "After that last time I saw you, when you helped me kill Darla, again, I kind of withdrew for a long time." He paused, brushing his fingertips over the smooth wood. "It hurt. I acted like a wounded animal, retreating off to wait to die. I was still working, still doing the day to day stuff, still killing demons, but the fight had gone out of me."  
"But.."  
"Oh, it was nothing that you did. Not directly, anyway. You were just you, Buffy. Same as you always were. I'd had this dream, you see, where I told you about the prophesy, about how I would become human, and in this little fantasy of mine, everything would be back the way it was, just like...But it didn't quite work that way, did it?" He looked at her, his eyes catching hers for a second. She shook her head.  
"Not quite."  
"No, not quite. You'd brought Riley along for the ride, and first thing I tell you is that I'm going to become human, and I stood there, waiting for some kind of reaction, which I got. "Good" you said, and then turned and walked over to Riley." He smiled wryly. "It wasn't what I'd thought would happen. So then we go off and kill Darla, you leave, and I'm in this big funk, as Cordelia put it time and time again. I knew that every demon I fought, every person I saved brought me closer to being human, even if only slightly. For the second time since I was cursed, I just wanted to give up, let the daylight take me."  
"But?" Buffy asked him quietly.  
"But.... About six months after we'd killed Darla, I was sitting up on the balcony, watching the coming dawn. I truly didn't feel like moving. I was ready to just finish it. I was watching the sky lighten in pre-dawn, and just sat there. Until Cordelia came up to me and railed on me. After we'd finished I got up and went downstairs and got on with my life. Killed demons, stopped plagues, an apocalypse or two, and then became human. And it's good. I like having to eat real food to keep my body going, and being able to tan, and aging along with everyone else."  
"I'm glad." Buffy paused now, thinking through what he'd said. "It's hard to think of you as suicidal again. We'd gone through that the Christmas you came back. But if you're okay now, happy now..."  
"Oh, I never said I was happy, Buffy." He said flatly. "I just said that it's good being human."  
"You.....What did Cordelia say to you?" She demanded. He thought back to that day.  
  
"Angel, you'd better get downstairs now." She said, coming up behind him.  
"I don't feel like it right now, Cordelia."  
"You know, I just received this lovely vision from the Powers that Be. I have to say, the length of it was not appreciated, nor was the pain afterwards!"  
"Cordelia, I really couldn't care about it. I don't care that someone is going to be demon dinner tonight. Or that Wolfram and Hart are bringing back someone else to torment me. Or anything else that the Powers want me to kill, stop, prevent or help. I'm just tired and want a rest."   
"Oh, it was nothing like that. For once, it was an almost nice vision. No really big bad monsters that smell disgusting. No clients that can't afford to pay. Just you and Buffy and this salty demon guy." Angel felt his breath stop in his chest. "There I was, getting all excited, thinking we could charge him, because with that ruby in his forehead, there was no way he couldn't afford to pay, but then you and Buffy had to go chasing him underground, and then you had to kill him, and turn human." She smiled when he turned to her, a stunned look on his face. "Did I forget to mention the part where the vision was of a day that didn't happen?"  
"You saw that day?" He whispered, stunned.  
"All of it." She saw his face, and quickly put up her hand. "Well, not quite all of it, although I can pretty much guess what happened to the few hours that went missing." She was quiet for a moment, looking out at the now pink sky. "That's why you're in this funk, isn't it? Because you thought that Buffy would find out you're going to become human and everything would be Brady Bunch again."  
"I....I was wrong." He bowed his head.  
"The Powers sent a message too." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a piece of paper with scribbled writing on it. "We remind you of your sacrifice for the good of the people. Remember and have patience. That was it, other than the blinding pain. Does that make sense?"  
"Yes." He looked at the almost blue sky and turned away. "Yes, it does...... Let's go downstairs. I'll cook you guys some eggs."  
  
"We....had a day together." Buffy repeated, stunned.  
"A day and night, actually." He clarified.  
"Fine, a day and night, then. We had this time together, how many years ago? And you don't even bother to tell me? And why don't I remember this day?"  
"The Oracles wiped it from everybody's mind but mine, so that I could kill the Morha demon. I was the only one able to remember."  
"Did you even ask me if I wanted to remember?"  
"No. It was bad enough knowing what we had, but for us both to remember, and look at each other, knowing...That would have been worse. So the Oracles turned the day back, and you forgot. Everyone forgot. And after a while, so did I. Not the day, but I'd forgotten why I'd asked them to take it back."  
"Why did you?" Buffy's voice was hoarse.  
"Because with me being Normal Joe, I couldn't fight. And me not being able to fight put you in danger. Morha said that a great darkness was coming, and with me gone, you would die too. I couldn't let that happen. The day got turned back, you went off in a snit, and we both saved the world. And they all lived happily ever after."  
"Or not."  
"Or not." He agreed. "But you still lived, and I still helped people. That was what the Powers had sent Cordelia to remind me about. My commitment to helping the helpless. I'd forgotten that." He looked up in surprise when he felt a hand on his cheek.  
"You're telling me that you gave up your humanity for the sake of that humanity?" He nodded in her hand, and she cupped it around his neck, leaning forward. "Angel, there are times when I am amazed by you." She kissed his forehead softly and backed away and slapped him across the face.  
"What did you do that for?" He asked, rubbing his red cheek.  
"Because there are also times when I can't believe you! You should have told me! You did another of your famous I-know-what's-best trips, and trust me when I tell you, I get really annoyed when you do!"  
"Dammit Buffy! I did what I thought was best." He swore softly. "We've already had this out once, and I really don't need to do it again."  
"Oh, yes we do! You may have had this fight already, but I haven't. And if I have, I can't remember it! You go off and do this time and time again. Never telling me until it's too late to do something about it! Then you expect me to sit back and say, Go ahead Angel, you know best. Well guess what? I'm not doing that this time!" She slashed her hand through the air, in a cutting motion.  
"You never did-."  
"Shut up! This time I'm older, and I can think for myself, so I'm thinking! You never consulted me when you tried to kill yourself that Christmas, just decided what was best for both of us. Oh, and that little thing about not telling me you were looking out for me when you came back to Sunnydale? That still gets my back up. Then you go and do it again! For the third time! What reason could you have to do it again?"  
"Fine! You want my reasons! One, the Morha took a warrior from our side, leaving us under-staffed. Two, we didn't have time for a committee meeting on the smarts of my actions."  
"A committee meeting? Since when....No, I'm not doing the Princess Leia thing."  
"Three, a lot of people were going to die if I stayed human. Four, you would die if I stayed human, trying to protect me."  
"I would die?" He glared at her, shutting her up.  
"Five, I would die much sooner than I was supposed to. Six, we wouldn't be able to stop the next world threat. Seven." He was speaking through clenched teeth now.  
"Okay, I get it." She held her hand up for him to stop.  
"Seven." He continued. "I couldn't face another night with you, knowing that it would end, and you would forget it. I didn't have the strength. Eight, I....Oh, screw this. Go back to your little boyfriend who can't think for himself. Go back to being the be all and end all of his thoughts. I've had enough of your self-centeredness. You want someone who can't think for himself? Who has to clear every thought through you first? You had that! Mr Riley Commando. Who needed to be told when to take a piss! When to eat, when to.....okay, I'm not going to finish that statement." He noticed she wasn't arguing. "You're not disagreeing."  
"No, I'm not. Why do you think I'm not with him anymore? I'd had enough of his puppy-dog eyes, his hanging on to me. You know, I never realised until now how much I enjoy fighting with you. At least you don't nod your head and parrot 'yes Buffy' with everything I say." She noticed he smiled at that.  
"No, I never did do that, did I?"  
"I just want to say one more thing before we go and find this Timothy."  
"What?" He braced himself.  
"I want us to try again, slowly this time. You know, go out on dates, some walks. Maybe even a few patrols together. I want to see if we can...."  
"Start again?"  
"Yes." She smiled, and he smiled back.  
"But we can't forget the past...I learned that a long time ago."  
"I don't want to forget. But I do want to learn from it." She held out her hand, and he took it, then kissed the back of her palm. She smiled in delight.  
"You have a deal, my lady." He made her heart flutter when he looked up, his face serious. Then he caused it to jump when he grinned. She hadn't seen him smile anywhere near enough. Not that kind of teasing, wicked grin. She made a vow to see it more often. 


	7. Stolen Minds, Chp7

Disclaimer: Let's see. Broke. Still working for a living. Not famous. Name not Joss Whedon. So that must mean that I don't own any of the characters that people recognise. More's the pity. Ahh well.   
Spoilers: This was written about half way through season one ATS, so anything prior to that.   
Authors Note: No malice is intended towards those that are mentally and physically disabled. I'd been watching 12 Monkeys and Patch Adams when this idea came to me. I know that these illnesses are debilitating and serious. Okay, now that I've got that understood (I hope) please R&R.  
Rating: Big surprise here, it's still PG  
  
Chapter 7  
  
"Well, people? What have we got?" Buffy asked, opening the office door.  
"Two pepperoni, one meatlovers and a supreme. Drink's in the fridge." Xander said. Even after all this time, he was still pizza and doughnut man. Angel smelt the pizza from inside his office and exploded outside, sniffing the air like a dog.  
"I smell supreme." He announced, then almost ran forward and dove into the pizza box, coming up with a big piece, dripping cheese and toppings. He was halfway through when he noticed a stunned silence from the room. He looked up to see the Slayer and her Slayerette's and Watcher all staring at him, stunned.  
"I haven't eaten pizza in about 8 months. I missed it." He told them, around a mouthful of cheese.  
"It's not that, Angel." Willow said, watching him. "We've never seen you eat...food before."  
"You haven't have you? I forgot about that."  
"That's okay. It's just.....different, that's all." Willow took a bite from her piece, watching him. He inhaled the first piece and then went for the meatlovers next.  
"Different is not the word." Xander said, drinking some coke. "He eats like a ......"  
"Child." Wesley supplied. "We've already had this discussion. We figured it was because he was so long without food, he just loves every bite, as though he was discovering it for the first time."  
"And as I told you before, Wes, it is for me. When I ate solids, we ate potatoes, leeks. Mutton. Very bland, boring foods. You guys have so much flavour in your diet, you're very lucky. Is there any coke?" He asked, wiping his greasy mouth on a napkin.  
"In fridge." Cordelia told him.  
"Anyone else?" He asked, going over. Giles and Wesley replied. He tossed them both a can and cracked his own. "So, honing in on the reason we're all here, has anyone found anything out about the lovely Timothy and his little effort with the terrorist the other day?"  
"Looks like a taking over the world kind of thing, again." Willow told him, reaching over to grab a book that was open on the floor. She gave it to him, and he squatted down, reading where she pointed.  
"Dominion. Take three pure souls, separate, add the blood of five rubels and the head of one frog, stir thoroughly and leave to set. It sounds like a recipe for a really bad cake."   
"Couldn't the 'dominion' bit be a bit more specific. Like how he will become dominant? And what are rubels?" Buffy asked, leaning back on the chair behind her.  
"Rubels are ...kind of like messengers for our side. Almost like an angel, but lower down in the scheme of things." Giles told her, reading over Angel's shoulder.  
"Why the frog?" Xander asked.  
"No idea. But it may be a good idea to find out." Giles replied, and they all took the hint and dove for the books again.  
"Got it!" Cordelia cried over an hour later. "Frogs are a sign of health and well being on earth. If there are frogs in your forest, the environment is in good shape. The book says the inclusion of a frog head binds the spell to the earth, and at the same time demonstrates the intentions of the spell-setter."  
"So the frog bit is basically saying, I want dominion over this little planet here, called earth?" Xander clarified.  
"That's the gist."  
"Oh, good. Can we kill him now?"  
"Why not?" Angel stood up and looked at Buffy, suddenly formal. "Mistress Summers, would you do me the honour of attending the slay of a certain Timothy Duvant?" He held his hand out, as if he was inviting her to dance. She looked at him in confusion, then saw the humour in his eyes, and smiled at him.  
"It would be my honour, Master Angel." He put her hand in his, and he lifted her to her feet and they strode off to the weapons room.  
"Ahhhhh....I hate to ask this, but....." Xander was the first to break the silence.  
"I think....He's courting her." Oz said softly, staring after them.  
"Courting? What the hell does that mean?" Cordelia asked.  
"When he grew up, in the time that he grew up, men courted their women. Similar to how we do today, but much more formally. He's going after her in the way he knows, the way he grew up."  
"They're starting again." Willow said softly. "Dates. Going out for picnics. Holding hands." She looked towards the weapons room, her eyes all soft and wispy. "That's soo sweet!"  
"Willow." Oz said quietly. She waved a hand at him, and sniffed.  
"Hormones. It's just hormones. I'll be okay in a minute." She wiped her eyes dry and watched the two warriors walking back towards them, loaded down with weapons.  
"Willow?" Buffy asked, noticing the red eyes. Willow smiled slightly.  
"It's hormones." Xander said knowledgeably. "She has hormones again."  
"What do you mean, hormones?" Angel asked, dropping his load on the coffee table.  
"Willow's pregnant. It kind of screws up her hormones a little, makes her weepy." Cordelia explained. Angel looked at Willow, delight across his face.  
"You're carrying?"  
"Twins!" She said proudly.  
"How can you tell, you can't be that far along." Angel asked, looking at her stomach.  
"I'm not, but I can feel them. Two little boys."  
"Oh. That's good. Um...."  
"Why don't you go find Timothy, Angel?" Willow asked with a smile.  
"Yes, I think I will." He picked up his favourite weapon, the huge axe that he'd had for a few years now, and started up the stairs to go out. He heard someone clear their throat behind him and turned around. "What?"  
"Ahh, hate to damped your enthusiasm, but don't we need to find out where he is before you go off all half cocked and ready to fire?" Cordelia asked him.  
"Oh. Yes. Good idea, find out where he lives. Why didn't I think of that?"  
"Hey, don't stress it, man." Oz said.  
"Yeah, don't stress. You've been playing snap for the last six months, we kind of expected you to be off your game for a while." Xander grinned up at him.  
"Hey!" 


	8. Stolen Minds, Chp8

Disclaimer: See previous  
Spoilers: This was written about half way through season one ATS, so anything prior to that.   
Rating: Okay, here's where I get a little graphic. So I'll give it NC 17 for violent content  
  
Chapter 8  
  
Buffy and Angel stood in front of the apartment building, staring up at the 13th floor. They'd almost burst their stomachs laughing when they found out that he lived in room 666, floor 13 on Devil's Road. The originality was disturbing. So there they were, the two of them, preparing to slay this blood-mage and his three friends. Buffy had been a little apprehensive about killing humans, but her mind had been put to rest when Angel told her his 'friends' were actually minor demons.  
"In that case, you can have Timothy, and I can have his friends." She'd said, grinning.  
"Sounds like a deal to me. But if they get too fun, dust them." He'd warned her. "I don't want you uselessly hurt." Buffy had nodded her agreement.  
"Shall we?" She asked now, shifting from foot to foot.   
"After you, my lady." Angel said, sweeping her forward. She walked forward, and opened the door into the apartment building. They reached the lift, and Angel swore softly.  
"Well, at least it isn't the 666th floor." Buffy said philosophically. Angel just grunted and turned away from the broken elevator towards the stairs. Five minutes later, they reached the 13th floor, breathing a little harder than normal.  
"13th room. There's number six-oh-one." Buffy pointed down one corridor.  
"six-fifty-eight this way." Angel looked the other way.  
"Corridor number two it is." The both started forward quietly. For mid afternoon, the building seemed to be unusually quiet.  
"It's more than likely his influence." Angel muttered.  
"What?" Buffy asked softly, leaning close to him.  
"This place is very quiet. I just figured that his presence on this floor could be affecting that."  
"Makes sense. I wouldn't want to live next door to a blood-mage, I know that much."  
"So, do we knock?" She asked when they reached door 666.  
"I don't think so. Just go on in." He shoved against the door with his shoulder, and felt the wood give against the force. He stood back and kicked, and the door swung open. Bursting into the room, the two took up aggressive stands, ready to fight. What greeted them was something they'd never thought about. Timothy was not there. None of his 'friends' were there. They were alone. That is, of course, except for the body lying on the kitchen floor, on top of some white laminex. The red blood shone dully on the white background, mute testimony to how long it had been there. Hours, if not days.  
"Oh, God!" Buffy whispered, putting a hand to her mouth. Angel agreed with her. Even during his long life-time, this body was amongst the worst he'd seen. Buffy, even being the Slayer, didn't usually come across brutally tortured and murdered people.  
  
The body lay on its' back. Angel walked over to take a closer look and finally identified that the body was male. Or rather, what was left of the body was male. It looked as though the skin had been flayed off the body, bit by bit. There was no face left, just raw red meat, and here and there a hair on his scalp. Angel heard a step behind him and looked around to see Buffy there, hand still over her mouth, but looking none the less.  
"Buffy...." He objected, but she shook her head.  
"I need to see this just as much as you do." She glanced at the body, then squatted down on the clear area of laminex. She stared at the body for a long time before taking a breath.  
"I think I'm going to go throw up now." She said, rising and turning for the other rooms. Angel watched her go, then crouched down where she had. He looked at the body closely, trying to see the history of the torture. He saw removed fingers and toes. No ears to speak of, or nose. The tongue was still intact, he could see the pink flesh between the gaps in the teeth. His eyes had been burnt out, and there was nothing left between his legs. Nothing. Angel shuddered, and turned away for a second, horrified at what had been done to this man.  
"Angel!" He heard Buffy call from one of the other rooms. He stood up and went to her quickly, relieved to be getting away from the body. He found her in the bathroom, looking at some clothes. She held out a wallet to him when he reached her, and he looked inside to see the drivers license of a 38 year old male. His name had been George Binazweski. Angel quickly flipped through the wallet and found a train stub. He checked the date and it was for four weeks ago. He'd been here for under four weeks. That was more than long enough.  
"The ritual is for tonight." He said, shutting the wallet.  
"How'd you know that?" Buffy asked, folding the pants neatly. She seemed to be doing this without being aware of it.  
"The power from .....what happened to George would be immense. He would be at the peek of his ability. It would be the best time to perform the ritual." He dropped the walled on top of the pile of clothing and walked back into the living room. He tried to ignore the body in the kitchen.  
"We need to see if the Scoobies have found a good place for where this ritual would occur."  
"What about him?" Buffy asked, not looking.  
"We'll give the cops an anonymous tip. Best we can do for him." Buffy walked outside and Angel followed, closing the ruined door behind him. They walked back down the corridor quickly, Angel pulling a cell phone from his pocket. He spoke briefly, notifying the police about the body, then hung up. By this time, they were half way down the stairs. The trip was much easier going down, than coming up. He dialed another number and spoke as he descended.  
"So?" He paused, listening to the other end. Buffy listed to him.   
"And where would they be?" He waited a minute. "Where would the closest be to here, that was also near a hospital, or a hospice?....Get back to me as soon as you can." He hung up and pocketed the phone, then opened the door for Buffy.  
"So?" She echoed him.  
"So. They figured that the best place for this dominion ritual to occur would be at a place of power. They reckon a sub station, or even main power plant would be best. They're looking into the local electricity maps of LA to find the nearest sub station to here."  
"Until then, what do we do?"  
"Dinner?" Angel suggested hopefully.  
"Angel it's just gone five o'clock. No where near dinner."  
"But food?" Buffy looked at him, then gave in.  
"Okay, fine. But nothing big or fatty."  
"Well, you can have a salad. I'm going for a hot dog. Or maybe some French Fries. Or a Taco? Mexican?? Italian? Thai??" He grinned. "All these foods I haven't eaten in months!"  
"Oh, God." He grabbed her hand and pulled her a long behind him, heading towards the nearest food district, which was just around the corner. 


	9. Stolen Minds Chp9

Disclaimer: Again with the previous - does anyone read this stuff, anyway?  
Spoilers: This was written about half way through season one ATS, so anything prior to that. Rating: Back to PG again  
  
Chapter 9  
  
He'd decided on Italian. He was slurping up what was left of the tomato penne while she watched, nibbling on her Caesar salad. She had to admit that it was fun to watch him eat with such abandon. He sat back with a huge sigh, a grin on his face.  
"Feel better now?" She asked him, a fork of lettuce half way from the bowl.  
"Oh, completely. I didn't know it, but I missed Italian food when I was in the ward." He picked up his wineglass and took a small sip. He'd only drunk half a glass with dinner, the red wine gleaming in the dim restaurant lights.   
"So, what are we going to do to start again? I mean, are we going to date?" Buffy asked after she'd swallowed the lettuce.  
"We already have." Angel grinned at her. He was smiling a lot today.  
"What do you mean?" She asked him, placing her fork on the plastic table-cloth.  
"This is our first dinner-date!" He polished off his wine in one long gulp.  
"Dinner date? No one told me about this being a date! You were hungry, remember!?"  
"Well. I was hungry. You ate with me. We had dinner. We were together...That says to me, date!"  
"But-." The phone on the table beside Angel stopped any more arguments from Buffy.  
"Yes, Cordy?" He answered. He listened for a while, nodding his head, then hung up without a word. He stood up, leaving some notes on the table to pay for the meal. Buffy stood up and followed him out of the restaurant.  
"Well?" She asked, stepping up beside him.  
"The closest one is about two miles from here." He looked down at her. "We can walk or get a taxi." She looked at the traffic moving slowly alongside them.  
"I think we'll walk it."  
"The others are going to meet us there, with a fix." He grabbed her hand and they started off at a pace that would quickly tire any body else.  
  
"Next time, I want to have a bit of warning." Buffy told him.  
"Why?"  
"Because I'd like to be able to ....."  
"Get all pretty?" Angel smiled. "You already are."  
"Not just that, but a date is....different. People behave....differently."  
"Buffy, you don't have to behave differently just because it's a date. I've seen you at your best. And your worst. Just being with you is a date to me."  
"That's sweet. But I still want a warning next time." He studied her, then nodded.  
"What do you mean, at my worst?" She demanded, suddenly realising what he'd said.  
"Ahh, nothing."  
"You're not getting out of it that easy, Mister. Tell me what you meant by seeing me at my worst!" She was enjoying watching him squirm.  
"I...ahhh....Oh look, we're here." He sounded relieved. She growled, but let him off the hook. Across the road and half way down the next block was the power plant, lit up and bright against the darkening sky. They stopped where they were and slunk back into the shadows of the building beside them, suddenly all business.  
"Where are the others?" Buffy whispered. Angel looked around, squinting against the setting sun.  
"There!" Buffy pointed, spotting them driving up in Giles' car. She dashed out onto the road and waved them down. Angel was grateful that the road was out of the way and quiet at this time of day. Giles pulled the car up beside the kerb, and Willow, Cordelia and Xander poured out. Giles shut the door and locked it. He was very protective of the new car.  
"So, how do we kill this guy?" Buffy asked them.  
"No Hi, guys, good to see you?" Xander complained.  
"Hi guys, good to see you. How do we kill this guy?" She saw Giles smile briefly.  
"At the moment he's pretty much as killable as all of us. Bullet to the heart, fall from heights, electric shock. All pretty much deadly." Willow told them I a voice that sounded remarkably teacher-like.  
"Ahh. And after?" Buffy asked.  
"That get's a little dicey." Cordelia told them. "Pretty much the dismemberment guys after the ritual. Much like that doctor a couple of years ago."  
"Doctor?" Buffy asked, looking at Angel.  
"We had a psychic surgeon who left bits of his body all over the place. We had to split him up and put him into.....You really don't want to hear this." He said after a long pause.  
"Yes, we do." Xander said with a silly grin. "We love hearing about your....cases. They're such interesting stories."  
"We put him into ten steel boxes and buried him in a new apartment concrete floor." Angel finished in a rush.  
"So, we have experience in that type of thing!" Cordelia said brightly.  
"Let's not let it get that far." Buffy suggested.  
"Can I second that?" Willow piped up. "Oh, I forgot to mention one little thing."  
"What's that?" Angel asked her.  
"He's kind of.....strong now, like you two." The two warriors looked at each other.  
"He's stronger now. Much stronger." Buffy told them.  
"Why do you say that?" Giles asked. Buffy hesitated and Angel picked up the slack.  
"We found....a body in his apartment. He'd been....tortured to death. The kind of pain and fear involved in his death would be like a drug to Timothy. He won't feel pain or exhaustion. There won't be a need for hunger, sleep. Nothing but the thrill of the kill." The others shifted uncomfortably. Angel sounded far too knowing.  
"Oh. Well then." Giles cleared his throat and looked at the power station down the road. "Do we have a plan?"  
"Well, I was thinking." Buffy drawled. "Maybe Angel and I could go in there, rough up some demon guys, kill them, kill Timothy, stop the dominion ritual and then maybe, go home and talk about how to date a woman in the new millennium."  
"Sounds like a plan to me." Xander cried. "What about dating in the new millennium?"  
"Never mind." Cordelia told him, hitting his arm.  
"Do you need backup?" Giles asked her, polishing his glasses. Buffy and Angel exchanged glances.  
"That would be good." The others looked at Buffy in shock. She was actually agreeing to their backing her up. She looked at them and smiled.   
"We have this big bad to deal with. If you could watch out for the demons that we miss, that's all we'd need. We just need to be able to concentrate on Timothy, without distractions." They nodded, taking deep breaths. Buffy stepped forward, but Angel grabbed her arm. He looked to the others.  
"Just give us a couple of seconds." He told them, pulling Buffy with him around the corner.  
"What?" Buffy asked, then shut up as her mouth was smashed up against his. Minutes later, a breathless Buffy stepped back and looked at him, all soft eyes. He smiled at her gently, tracing her jaw. She leant into his hand, her eyes closing.  
"We need to go back and get this over with. I just wanted you to remember why we're doing this." He told her softly, hugging her to him.  
"Not likely to forget." She said into his shoulder. "Although I would like to remember what happened that day that they took back." She felt him chuckle, could hear the suppressed laughter in his chest.  
"You have no idea, Buffy." He grinned down at her. She pulled back and looked up at him, somber.  
"Tell me." Angel looked away, suddenly hesitant.  
"Buffy, we have to go and get Timothy." He objected.  
"Trust me, he won't be starting the ritual for a while yet. Most of these things don't come to a climax until midnight. As it's only just." She checked her watch. "7 o'clock, I think we have time. If this goes bad, I want to at least know what we had, once." He looked at her for a long time.  
"Okay, but I have to tell the others we'll be a little longer." He walked to the corner. "You guys want to go grab something to eat? We've got some talking to do. Give us half an hour?" The others stared at him for a minute, then walked up the street, away from the power station. Angel and Buffy sat down on the stairs, deep in shadow. "The first time you came to LA, when the Morha demon attacked. I didn't know how to kill it, and we followed it into the sewers. We tracked it, got separated and I killed it, but it's blood mixed with mine and made me human."  
"And?" She asked when he stopped talking.  
"I went to the Oracles-."  
"Oracles?"  
"Yes, the Oracles. I asked them why I was made human, and they said because it was so. They were the Oracles, so I don't know why I expected a sensible answer from them. So anyway, I went to find you, and we..."  
"Did the wild thing?" She asked.  
"Not quite."  
"We didn't?" Buffy sounded stunned.   
"Well, not right there on the beach." He smiled. "We went back to my building where I proceeded to explain why we couldn't ...then we did any way." She grinned back at him.  
"Well, that's something any way. Did we have fun?" She asked. It felt funny, not remembering any of this. She jerked back when he grinned at her. It was so bright and full of mischief.  
"We broke the kitchen table." She spluttered. "Then there was some chocolate and peanut butter. Oh, and the ice cream." Her mouth was open now, stunned. "Don't forget the shower. Or the staircase. My office chair. Oh, and the lift."  
"The lift?" She squeaked.   
"So maybe the last two were my imagination. But the others?" His mouth turned up in a soft, memory filled smile. She smiled back at him, but there was sadness there.  
"Buffy?" He asked, reaching for her hand.  
"I wish I could remember it. Not just that, but the day." He pulled her to him, holding her close.  
"We'll make another day like it." She nodded, then looked up at him.   
"Angel." She said softly. He looked down at her.  
"That whole thing about going slowly?" He nodded to show he knew what she was talking about. "I lied. I don't want to start again." She saw his eyes widen in shock. "No, not like that. I just don't want to waste any time with you. We've been apart for long enough as it is, and I just don't know how long I have left. As it is, I'm one of the oldest slayers, and I'm bound to meet up with a vampire stronger or faster than me at some point. I don't want to die thinking that I'd wasted time." She studied him for a time, watching the emotion play over his face. "Can you understand that?"  
"I can. That is almost word for word what you told me on that day we lost. But right now, we have a little something to deal with."  
"Timothy, right." She turned to face him full on, bracketing herself between his thighs. She leant forward, her eyes sparkling with the same mischief as his had shown minutes before. "But after that.....We need to go and buy some ice-cream. And peanut butter and chocolate." She leant even closer, so that their eyes were inches apart. "There's an elevator in your hotel building, isn't there?" She grinned, darted forward to give him a quick kiss, then leapt back and stood up. Angel just sat there, his mind elsewhere. He shook his head then growled at her.  
"That wasn't fair." He complained, getting up slowly.  
"What?" She sang innocently. He just glared, then sobered. "What." She repeated, but this time seriously.  
"Nothing." Angel dismissed her question.   
"Angel. Tell me what's wrong." She touched his arm softly. He looked at her, his eyes black and bleak behind his brows.  
"I'm afraid." She frowned at him. Angel? Afraid?  
"Of what?"  
"You." He put a finger to her mouth, stopping her from talking. "Not of you, but for you." He looked at the power plant just down the road, then turned back to her. "We have never had anything go right since we first met. Something always got between us, separated us. Like the Powers That Be never meant for us to be together. My curse was the biggest thing between us. And now it's gone....." He gripped her hand, hard. Buffy could feel the bones crunching together. "Now the curse has been lifted, and I'm mortal again, I'm scared that one of us isn't going to make it to tomorrow. And I'm terrified that it's going to be me left here to go on without you." Buffy was quiet for a long moment.  
"Angel, look at me." He did so, his eyes pleading with her to tell him his fears were incorrect. "You may be right. But if you think for one moment that either of us will ever leave the other again, you are so wrong. We have never left each other." She was no holding onto his hand has hard as he was holding hers. Their knuckles were turning blue from lack of circulation.  
"But I did. I was sent to hell. I was without you for more time that I can recall."  
"But you weren't. While you were in hell, you visited me. Or rather, your sane self did. In dreams. You advised me, kept me from giving up, gave me support, comfort and love when I most needed it. Even from another dimension, suffering God knows what torments, you stayed with me. If you can do that, how easy would it be for us to stay together even after one dies? Trust me when I say that if I do die tonight, which I can assure you, I am not planning to do, I will not leave you." She touched his chest, over his heart. "I'm in here, and you're in me. And the PTB know that. Besides," she added, to lighten the tone. "Who's going to help me eat all the ice-cream I intend on buying after this is over?" She smiled at him, her head tilted to one side. He slowly smiled back, then leant against the wall beside the stairs, holding her close and resting his face against her hair. She was right, they were together no matter what. Had been since he'd first seen her, years before. They stood that way for long minutes, each gaining strength from the other. The others, returning from wherever they'd managed to find some food, found them like that, almost asleep.  
"How can they be so damned relaxed when they're fighting a guy for dominion tonight?" Xander commented from the roadway. The couple jumped, and separated. Buffy sent a playful glare Xander's way, straightening her top and neatening her hair. Angel just stood straighter and said nothing.  
"Can we go kill Timothy now?" Cordelia asked. Buffy looked at Angel, who shrugged.  
"I got nothing planned for a couple of hours. You?" Buffy shook her head, then turned to the group.  
"Sure, sound's like a good way to waste a few hours. Weapons, anybody?" Giles silently held out a large gym bag, bulging at the seams.  
"None for me, thanks." Angel said, drawing his axe from his coat. "I already got me a play stick."  
"I'll have one, though." Buffy said, reaching in and pulling out a cross-bow. "Ooh, my favourite. How did you guess?" She checked the trigger and made sure each of the three arrows was notched correctly. Giles cleared his throat pointedly.  
"Oh, sorry Giles. Thanks. And well-loaded, too. Did you remember to-?"  
"Don't teach me how to suck eggs, Buffy. I'm not you're grandmother." Giles pointed out. Buffy blushed, realising that Giles knew all about cross-bows.  
"Sorry, Giles." She apologised.  
"Shall we?" Angel asked. They all nodded and he started forward, everyone falling in behind him. He heard Xander start whistling the tune from Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, and smiled to himself. It was off to work they went. 


	10. Stolen Minds Chp10

Disclaimer: Blah Blah Blah - see previous  
Ratings: PG  
  
  
Chapter 10  
  
The chained and locked gate held up briefly, then gave in against Slayer strength. She opened the gates, wincing as one groaned and shuddered. They all slipped inside, Angel bringing up the rear. Buffy led them into the plant building, a small one with only two levels. It was dark inside, but she could still see it was empty. She looked around, then darted silently up the stairs to take a look inside the office, which was equally empty. She came out and looked down at her friends, then shook her head.  
"Where did everybody go?" Cordelia asked, in a parody of Xander.  
"I durro!" Xander now sounded like Scooby-doo. "Shaggy?" He turned to Oz, a grin on his face. Oz joined in.   
"I dunno, either, Scoob. Maybe Velma can tell us." He looked at his wife, who was shaking her head in amazement.  
"Velma? Thanks guys." Willow grinned.  
"Hate to break this up, but I think I've found something." Wesley said from the other side of the building, crouched down in front of the wall. Angel came across to him quickly, looking at what Wesley was pointing at.   
"That looks remarkably like a blue-print of this plant." Angel observed.  
"Hey, you'd be that tall blonde guy that I can't remember the name of right now." Xander told him.  
"Xander, no one can ever remember his name. That's the point." Willow told him. Buffy was looking over Angel's shoulder at the blue print. "Hey, look at that." She pointed out. "It's a hidden room."  
"And introducing Daphne to the stage!" Cordelia announced. Buffy and Angel looked at her curiously. "Well, if you're whatshisname, then that would mean Buffy is Daphne, wouldn't it? Besides, she always points out strange stuff."  
"True. And his name was Fred." They all stared at her, silently. She cleared her throat. "Anyway, as I was saying, there's a hidden room on the other side of the plant. Probably an old store room or something. What do you think, Will? Good for ritual recipes and baking?"  
"I'd say so, Buffy. Only one way to check it out."  
"And that sounds like a plan to me!" Xander announced. He looked at Cordelia and grinned. "We have a plan now. Aren't we smart!"  
"Smart? Xander, that word should never be heard coming out of your mouth. It could be dangerous."  
"Now listen, Queen Cordelia, I happen to know a lot of stuff nowadays."  
"Like?" Cordelia asked. The others were heading out of the building, and Xander and Cordelia walked out behind them.  
"Well, like......Um.....An apple a day.."  
"I already knew that one. Anything new?"  
"How about the fact that the hidden room is glowing?" He said, pointing at the dirt floor about fifty yards away, to the right. The others had stopped and were looking at the glowing dirt.  
"I'd say the ritual has started." Giles observed.  
"Really? And what would make you say that, Giles?" Wesley asked him. "It couldn't be the fact that this ordinary looking dirt is glowing like a 70watt bulb, could it?"  
"Well, then. Let's go in and gate crash this little shindig, shall we?" Buffy asked, getting a more comfortable grip on her cross-bow.  
"Sounds good. Ahh, where's the door?" Angel asked, looking around.  
"Over here." Oz said, pointing towards a gap in the ground, with stairs leading down. Buffy and Angel went over and then looked at the others.  
"Remember, we just want you dealing with his lackeys. And the one's we don't get first, at that. No heroics." Buffy glared at them all. They nodded in unison. She looked at Angel, her eyebrow raised. "Shall we?"  
"Remember. I get Timothy." Angel growled, mouth snarling.  
"Sure, you get Timothy." The two of them trotted silently down the stairs, the rest filling up on weapons and following at a slower pace.  
  
Angel slowly opened the door, wincing as it creaked slightly. He snuck his head around and saw that the room was divided up into several smaller rooms, with a corridor connecting them. Angel opened the door completely, and he and Buffy walked slowly inside. Buffy went to the first door and opened it, then shut it quickly.  
"That would be those spirit things."  
"Rubels." Angel told her.  
"Whatever. We've got to find those five pure souls and get them out of here, before they're dead."  
"Buffy." Angel grabbed her arm softly, getting her attention. She looked back at him. "Buffy, they're probably already gone. That guy back in the apartment was probably the last of them. We're actually not here to save their lives, but their souls. If we let this ritual continue, both the rubels and the souls will be stuck here, inside Timothy, feeding him, giving him power and immortality."  
"So it would be eternal damnation sort of thing?" Buffy whispered.  
"Yes. Trust me when I tell you, that's not a good thing. We have to find Timothy, and stop this ritual before he binds them to him." She stared at him for a long time, then reluctantly nodded.  
"The glowing upstairs came from this direction." He walked softly to the last door, laying his hand against it. "They're in there."  
"Who are?"  
"The souls and Timothy. I think he binds them before the Rubels. It would make sense." The door knob moved without warning, and Angel jumped back, hiding in the deeper shadow behind the door. Buffy did the same. The door opened, and out walked one of the most hideous demons Angel had ever come across. And he'd seen a few. He heard Buffy whisper a soft eeew and agreed with her. The demon was covered in what looked like mucus, and smelt like bile. The head was a twisted shape, much like a lump of dough that had been kneeded too much. The single eye was perched on top of the head, and it's mouth dripped the same mucus like substance that covered it's body. The demon had no arms, but seemed to be insect like. It scuttled across the floor on four of its limbs, the other two reaching out to grip the door know where Buffy had found the Rubels. Angel and Buffy exchanged a quick glance, then darted forward, weapons raised. Angel swung heavily at the doughy head, thudding against it and hacking away with the axe. Buffy sighted down her cross-bow and aimed for the eye. In almost every demon she had encountered, the eyes were always vulnerable. The demon opened it's mouth in a mute scream, and at that moment, Angel succeeded in decapitating it. It's head dropped with a dull thud, and then the insect like body folded in on itself and withered, drying quickly. The door hung open and Angel looked up to see the Rubels peering out, their faces lined with stress.  
"Stay there. We will be back to free you soon." One of them looked at him, it's face flowing like water. It smiled back at him.  
"Sure thing, Angel man." Buffy watched as Angel's eyes went wide in shock, then he leaned in closer, his breath stopping.  
"Doyle?" His breathed. "Doyle, is that you?"  
"What, did you think I was going to other way? Never, man. Look, right now you've got a thing to deal with. I'll be round when you've finished. Besides, I've got an urge to see the Fair Cordelia." Buffy pulled at Angel's arm, silently urging him along. Angel looked up and saw the others at the door.  
"Guard this door. Don't let anything through." He barked at them, then dashed across the corridor to join Buffy. They kicked the door out simultaneously, it crashing to the floor with a loud thump, startling those inside. Angel was through, his axe held casually in his right hand. Buffy backed him up, sighting down her cross-bow.  
"Angel!" The human in the middle of the demons cried out, surprised. Then he grinned. "I'm stunned. I didn't think you'd be out yet. I thought it would take your side-kicks a little longer to find you." He then looked at Buffy, who had her Slayer face well and truly plastered on her features. "And who is this pretty creature?" Timothy asked, staring intently at her.  
"I'm the Slayer." She told him flatly. He raised his brows in disdain.  
"The Slayer? Really. And you thought to come and kill little old me?" He grinned. "Hate to tell you this, Slayer. But I'm human. You can't kill me. It's against your rules."  
"I can make an exception." Buffy told him. "Stay there!" She barked, swinging around to face a snarling cat looking creature. She studied it. "You know, you look a lot like Sabre-tooth from the X-men." She observed. It snarled. "Ah, ah. No movies, other wise you get a present from Mr Cross-bow here."  
"She really likes her work, doesn't she?" Timothy observed to Angel.  
"Loves it. Good at it too. So, are we going to get to it now, or talk a bit more? Cause frankly, I have plans for tonight."  
"So did I, Angel. Looks like one of us is going to be disappointed. Wonder who will it be?"  
"Trust me, Timothy. It isn't going to be Angel. I'm making sure of that." Buffy was watching the demon to the left of her, who was slowly creeping up, just on the edge of her vision.  
"Oh. I think I detect some sparks in here. Don't tell me you two do business and pleasure. How cliché." Buffy couldn't help herself. She laughed. Loudly.  
"What is funny, Slayer?" Timothy asked, curious.  
"Cliché. Us. You, who happen to be a blood-mage. Who lives in apartment 666 at 13 Devils Road, are calling us Cliché? Sorry, that's just too amusing for words." She turned and fired, killing the demon in mid leap. It fell before her, it's claw brushing her toe.  
"Looks like it's on for young and old." She quipped. Three demons came at her at once, thinking to subdue her by numbers. They were too close for the cross-bow, so she fired the remaining two bolts at two more demons, slightly farther away, and used the bow as a weapon, striking Sabre-tooth guy across the face with it, sending him hurtling in to the wall. She used her elbow on the way back, breaking a remarkably human looking demon's nose on the way through. She smiled when he vamped out. She always felt at home when she was killing vampires. One of the bow's ends found it's way into the vampire's heart, and he disappeared with a roar and a cloud of ash. Unfortunately, the cross-bow went with it. She looked around, searching for some sort of weapon when she heard a shout. She looked behind her to see Giles holding out a sword. He flung it at her, and she caught it, hilt first. She turned back and swung the sword around, getting its weight.  
"Next?" She asked. Saber-tooth roared and pounced, his hands extended like claws of a cat. Buffy stepped back and neatly cut him in two. It was a very sharp sword. She turned to see another two coming slowly towards her.  
"Two at a time? But I'm not that kind of girl! Really. Oh, alright. Just this once."  
Angel and Timothy stood a few metres apart, both watching the Slayer work. Angel had a slightly proud smile on his face. Timothy had a frown.  
"She's very good." Timothy told Angel.  
"I know."  
"What is her name?"  
"Buffy Summers."  
"Buffy? You're kidding. That's Buffy Summers? I thought she was supposed to be about 7 foot tall."  
"Not quite." He turned and looked at Timothy, his face hardening.  
"And you and she...? Great, I chose the wrong town and the wrong vampire."  
"You did." Angel snarled. This man before him was directly responsible for more than fifty deaths in the last year. He could feel them pressing on him, screaming for revenge. Timothy turned and smiled. He held up a hand, watching it in the light.  
"I'm very strong now. You and your Slayer can not defeat me. The ritual was almost complete. And your Slayer is tiring." He smiled. "Even now, I grow stronger." He reached out and grabbed hold of Angel's throat with his hand, gripping tightly. Angel didn't move.  
"Did I forget to mention that I have acquired a new skill? I can ensure that my victims do not struggle by freezing their central nervous system. In effect, I paralyse them." He glanced over at Buffy, who was slowly being beaten back by three very strong, very large demons. He liked that. He looked back to Angel, who was glaring silently at him. "Shall I give you back you're power of speech?"  
"You have not won, Timothy." Angel snarled. "Watch and learn." Angel turned his eyes to Buffy, who was now wailing on the three demons, feet and fists flying in concert. Timothy had relaxed his grip on Angel's throat, and he could breathe again. Buffy quickly knocked two demons to the ground, snapping one neck on the way. She then flipped her fallen sword up with her foot and quickly decapitated one demon and then efficiently stabbed the other through the heart. Without pause, she whipped around and dispatched the final demon, then turned back and started towards them, only to freeze in mid step.  
"Now that's unfair!" Buffy complained, straining against the freeze. She looked at Angel. "But at least I now understand why you've not been helping. You're forgiven." She grinned at him.  
"How did you manage to defeat my demons?" Timothy asked, shocked. Buffy shrugged. Or rather, she looked like she wanted to shrug, but couldn't.  
"I was just better than them."  
"But not me." Timothy gloated. "I am more powerful than you, and have won."  
"Now hang on a second, Mr I'm-better-than-you-are."  
"My name is Duvant."  
"Like I said. Hang on a second. I can't hear a fat lady singing, I certainly can't see a dark tunnel with a light at the end, so ain't no one won yet."  
"I beg your pardon?" Angel smiled. Timothy didn't understand Buffy speak.  
"She said that we aren't dead yet, so no-one has won."  
"Why didn't she just say so?"  
"Because she's Buffy." He smiled. Even in the middle of a life and death situation, she could make him smile.  
"That's my name!" She grinned back.  
"You want death? Have it!" They both felt a pinch at the back of their neck, and fell to the floor. Neither could breathe, and they couldn't move at all. Their eyes were open but neither could move nor could they speak. Within seconds, spots were appearing before their eyes. They were running out of oxygen.  
"Hold!". A voice boomed out. Without warning, the room disappeared and they were in some sort of cave like chamber. In front of them were two old men, each sitting in a large, wooden chair.  
"Now, that's not fair!" The bald one said, gesturing widly. "He hasn't finished the ritual, so he can't have those powers yet! You're cheating again, Ceedee."  
"Well, you always win these big ones, Marqu! It's not fair! I just wanted to win one for once!"  
"There's a reason for that. I insist that you undo that power, or I'll tell Dad on you!"  
"Fine then." Ceedee waved his hand, then sat back, sulking.  
"Begin!" They were suddenly back in the hidden room. Angel shot up like a rocket, and pounced on Timothy, snapping his neck in a signature Angelus move. Timothy sat back, stunned.  
"That wasn't very nice." He complained, rubbing his neck. Angel stood back, watching.   
"Axe?" Buffy asked.  
"Please." Buffy darted to where Angel had dropped his axe, then came back to watch at Timothy slowly collapsed down into a heap, his lips turning blue. He looked up at Angel, his eyes sad.  
"I think I'm about to go and see a fat lady in a tunnel." Buffy frowned. The light slowly dimmed in Timothy's eyes, then they faded completely. He was dead. Angel and Buffy stared down at him for a long time.  
"That was an anti-climax." Buffy said, a little sulky. Angel nodded.  
"Was, rather. I could say something about later, but I'll restrain myself." Buffy looked at him in confusion, then hit him across the shoulder, hard.  
"Angel!" She berated him, blushing slightly.  
"What are you complaining about, anyway. You got to do all the fighting. I just snapped a guy's neck. That's it. Two seconds, and I'm done. I've got all this energy stored up, and no fight!"  
"My turn to say, later?" Buffy grinned, then looked around behind her. The Scoobies and company were standing just inside the doorway, watching them.  
"Any trouble?" Buffy asked, walking over to them, stepping around gore and demon blood.  
"One demon thingy. It's dead now, though." Willow informed her.  
"Where's Cordelia?" Angel asked, noticing her absence. Giles frowned.  
"She was standing outside the door that we were guarding, when it opened and one of them stepped out, said 'Hiya, Princess' and held out a hand. She just followed him back inside." Angel looked at Buffy.  
"I've got to go talk to him for a minute. Be back." He walked quickly outside and knocked on the other door.  
"Would that be an ex-vampire by the name of Angel?" He heard an Irish voice ask.  
"Doyle!" The door opened, and he stepped inside. The three Rubels stared back at him.  
"You're free to go now. Timothy is dead." They gasped in unison, the one who was Doyle echoing it.  
"It's okay. He wasn't human any longer. Not by anyone's standards. You can go and take him to CeeDee now. He is free to go."  
"You know of CeeDee?" One of them asked, stunned.  
"I just met him before. Kind of. Him and Marqu were having a discussion on the benefits of cheating. They are the PTB, aren't they?" The Rubel's nodded.   
"You met the PTB?" Cordelia asked, coming forward. "Did you ask them take these visions away from me?"   
"Ahh, no. Sorry, I kind of forgot about that." She threw up her arms in disgust, muttering as she walked away. The won who was Doyle followed after her.  
"You can call him Doyle. We do." The other Rubel's told him. They flowed out of the room, the door closing after them.  
"So, Angel man. What's been up with you lately?" Doyle asked, coming back with Cordelia in tow.  
"Well, I lost my memory for a couple of months. I fought a few demons, plagues, end of the world demons and stuff. Killed Darla, my sire, again. Rid the world of some nasty lawyers. Admittedly that wasn't me, but kind of my fault. They just kept bringing up demons to kill me, and they wouldn't obey instructions. Oh, that's right, I became human again."  
"Human? Really? So what's the deal? You normal Joe now?"  
"Not quite. Kind of like a male slayer. Which reminds me." He opened the door and pulled Buffy, who was waiting outside, in.  
"This is Doyle, just in case you can't remember. He died around 3 years ago."  
"Looking pretty good for a dead guy." Buffy told him. "Doyle? But wasn't he a demon?"  
"Yup. Still am. Just a better classed one. So you two are together now."  
"Trying to be. But there's a bit of a problem." He held on to Buffy's hand tightly.  
"Oh?" Buffy and Doyle asked as one.  
"Life span. Slayers don't live very long, and my line of work isn't very safe and secure. I was thinking, seeing as how you've got a direct line to Marqu, maybe you could have a whisper in his ear?" Doyle hesitated, then nodded and closed his eyes. Within seconds, he'd opened them again. He looked a little guilty.  
"What?" Buffy demanded, seeing his face.  
"Ahh, it looks like there was an.....administration error to do with you both." Angel tensed up, dreading what was to come. Given their past, he was sure it was news that he really wasn't supposed to be human yet, or Buffy was required to leave and go off to East Asia or something equally separating.  
"What kind of administration error?" Buffy was growling now.  
"Ahh, we forgot to tell you both some things that we should have a long time ago."  
"Like?" Angel whispered.  
"Like that fact that you two will remain as you are until such time as you're no longer needed."  
"Huh?" Cordelia asked for all of them.  
"That sounded like you just said we're immortal." Angel sounded horrified.  
"No, not immortal. You will still be as you are now. Human, mortal. But you won't age, and you won't slow down. You will remain as you are, your age right now, until the PTB have...grown up a little bit and stopped fighting amongst themselves." He grinned, looking pleased with himself. "Marqu and Ceedee are PTB, but they're young. I went above them. To the one they call Dad. He let me know what to tell you. You're not immortal. No one is. But you can only be killed, you cannot die of natural causes." He paused for a second. "That really doesn't sound like a reward, does it? But what I meant to say was-."  
"I think we understand. We'd have difficulty letting anyone else do our job, so Dad has given us as long as we need to do it in. And after that, we'll age normally again, and live until we get old kind of thing." Buffy summed up what he was trying to say.  
"That sounds about right." Buffy and Angel were looking at each other.  
"Dad also said, and I quote 'this time marry, or it will be permanent separation'. Guess Dad wants it legal."  
"Legal." Buffy sounded shocked. In all the time she'd loved Angel, she'd never thought of marrying him. Not that she didn't want to. But it never occurred to her before.  
"I have a feeling that Dad didn't want any.....nooky before then."  
"Nooky?" Cordelia snorted.  
"Fine then, no sex before marriage." Buffy and Angel looked at each other, then grinned.  
"Is there a bulk buying store anywhere near here?" Buffy asked.  
"What do you need in bulk?" Cordelia asked. "Oh, wait. I don't want to know."  
"Not that. Well, not quite. We need some chocolate, some peanut butter."  
"And some mint choc cookie dough fudge ice-cream. Buckets of it." Angel said with a grin.  
"Buckets?" Buffy turned to him.  
"Buckets." He agreed. 


	11. Stolen Minds Epilogue

Disclaimer: We're here! Finally! Any characters you don't recognise are mine. Buffy and Angel aren't. *Sigh *  
Rating: PG   
Epilogue:  
  
"I am completely and utterly full now." Buffy sighed, sitting back from the table. It was covered in every sinful food that they could think of.  
"I have to say, I still like this deal we got from Dad. We can eat what we want, and it doesn't affect us in any way." She plucked at some of the chocolate covered strawberries still lying on the table, nibbling at one.  
"Except for the ice-cream." Angel agreed, grinning. Buffy nodded, smiling herself.  
"Except for the ice-cream. By the way, did you get the lift fixed yet?" She licked the chocolate off her fingers, knowing Angel was watching. He growled at her.  
"What?" She asked, all innocent.  
"The lift won't be fixed for another two days, and you know it." He looked at the wedding ring on her left hand and wondered what had made him marry this insufferable tease of a woman.  
"Cause ya love me!" She grinned, answering his well known look. She had been teasing him for years, since he came back from hell. Before the teasing was all there could be, but now it was a means to an end. One they both enjoyed. Angel sobered briefly.  
"Have you noticed there's been a drop in demon numbers recently? Or rather, demon killings?"  
"I have. I think CeeDee and Marqu are growing up a little." She paused for a time, remembering. "I just wish Giles and the Gang were here to see it finally happen." She grew melancholy. Angel got up and moved around the table.  
"They were content to know that it would, and we would be there to make sure it would. When we see them again, we can tell them that." Buffy looked down at where their hands joined, then up into his eyes.  
"I didn't realise you believed in heaven."  
"I have to. Otherwise, what was my fight for? Besides, I've already seen hell, and there are always opposites. So there has to be a heaven. And from what I experienced, it's going to be very much like paradise." A door banged shut behind them, and they both listened to the sound of running feet. A small blonde girl came running around the table and crashed into both of them.  
"Mummy!! Alex won't leave me alone! He keeps trying to cut my hair!"  
"Was not!" Alexander objected from the otherside of the table, hands behind his back. Angel just looked at his older son, who shuffled his feet, then put the scissors in his hands on the table.  
"See! Told ya he was!" Cordelia poked out her tongue at her older brother, who turned red in fury, and darted around to hit her. Angel stood up and grabbed his son, hauled him over his shoulder and walked out of the room.  
"Cordelia, never poke you're tongue out, it's not nice."  
"You do, Mummy. I see you poke your tongue out at Daddy all the time."  
"That's different." Buffy excused herself.  
"Why?"  
"Because I'm an adult."  
"Why?" Buffy sighed and rolled her eyes. Three year olds' were hell.  
"You chose to have her, Mum." She heard Carmen say from behind her. She looked at her oldest daughter, now in her forties, and smiled.  
"I missed having you around, badgering me."  
"Carmen!" Cordelia cried, releasing her mother to hug her sister's leg.  
"Hey, spud." Carmen said, giving her back a rub.  
"Is Wesley here?" She asked.  
"Out the back with Alex." Cordelia gave a squeal and went seeking her favourite nephew, who happened to be a few years older than she was. Carmen looked at the table, still groaning underneath the weight of all the food.  
"You two at it again?" Carmen asked, plucking a prawn from the bowl in the middle. Buffy grinned and shrugged.  
"Well...." Carmen looked at her mother, still looking as young as Carmen's oldest, who was only twenty-three. She was blushing like a school-girl.  
"You'd think, after almost fifty years together, you two would be at least squabbling every now and then."  
"Sorry, honey. No can do." Angel said and plopped a kiss on his daughter's crown.  
"Hey, Dad." Carmen said, cuddling in to his chest. "What's doing?"  
"Not much this week. Pretty quiet, in fact. Your mother's been training the latest second Slayer. Reminds me a lot of your mother when she was her age."  
"How's she holding up?" Carmen asked, sitting down. She watched as her father, who still looked like he was in his mid-twenties, sat down and reached for her mother's hand. It was instinct. Carmen was almost sure they weren't even aware of the fact that whenever they were together, they touched in some way. It was nice, sweet. She remembered times when she'd introduced her mother and father to friends, always by their names, and they were asked how long they'd been together, or when they were getting married.  
"She's doing fine." Buffy answered her daughter's question. "A little slow on the rebound, but otherwise, she'll be a very good slayer. Where's Ron?" Buffy asked her husband.  
"He's out with Alex and Wes. They're playing that new game, what did they end up calling it?"   
"Ricket." Carmen supplied.  
"That's right." He clicked his fingers.   
"Ron is very like his father. Oz loved the twins. Have you heard from Rob yet?" Buffy asked her daughter.  
"He's coping. Losing Jaria like that hurt him. I think Ron said that he was with some Council friends, in Italy somewhere. He should be back soon, he's got Maria to start training now."  
"Poor Robby." Buffy said softly, feeling for her godson. Where Ron had taken after Oz, Robert had taken after Willow, down to the wicca power and computer know-how.   
"He'll be okay, Buffy." Angel reassured her. "He's got us and his brother. And soon he'll need to start fighting again. We have to have Maria ready for that. It may be quiet, but it ain't dead yet."  
"I know. Jaria was such a good Slayer. Argh! Can we change the subject?"  
"Sure. I ran into Mark today." Carmen offered.  
"Really? And how is he?" Angel asked  
"Good. He was really happy. He's Captain Windham-Price now, if you can get your mind around it."  
"Mark made Captain? That's really good!"  
"Where's he stationed?" Angel wanted to know.  
"Some mountain base. Cheyenne or something. Something to do with sattelites." Angel frowned, he'd heard of that place before.  
"Cheyenne? Sounds Indian." Buffy said.  
"It is." Angel started slightly as he felt his personal alert code go off. He pressed his hand to his wrist, shutting off the alert vibration, and turned to his wife.  
"Time to go to work?" She asked. He nodded, and they stood up as one.  
"Can we leave Alex and Cordelia with you until we get back?" Buffy asked Carmen.  
"Go ahead, Mum. We'll see you in a few hours." Carmen glanced at the table, saw the left over finger foods, the champagne, and looked back at her parents. "Tell you what, we'll take the kids for the weekend. You have some time to yourselves. I'll put a freeze on the table, and you can...finish this off when you get back." She was rewarded when her parents smiled at her in gratitude, then disappeared. As always, she'd never know what they were fighting until they came back. But they always did, so she put the freeze on the table and went out to join the game of Ricket, which was getting louder by the minute. 


End file.
